The Overqualified Candidate

Dreamfedjob.com

Some job candidates have more skill, education, or experience than a position requires. These “overqualified” candidates often face particular challenges in finding a job. To succeed in the job market, overqualified candidates need to understand an employer’s concerns, highlight their experience, and communicate effectively.

Employer concerns. An organization with high employee turnover can make future job candidates wary. Reluctance to hire overqualified candidates sometimes stems from these turnover fears: Employers believe that an overqualified worker will continue to seek a job more closely aligned with his or her credentials—and leave when one turns up.

Cheri Butler, associate director of Career Services at the University of Texas at Arlington, says prospective employers have reservations about hiring overqualified candidates: “If I hire him, will he stay? Will he be unhappy with the wage we offer? Does she only want a paycheck? Why would she apply to a job that is below her skill and experience level?” As a result, employers may prefer the “just right” candidate, someone with the correct level of qualifications, who seems a safer choice.

Highlighting experience. Overqualified candidates mindful of this employer hesitation may worry about calling attention to their experience. Many choose to prepare a functional, rather than chronological, resume to emphasize their skills without underscoring years of work. Some experts advise overqualified candidates to downplay their experience on a resume to avoid rejection during the initial culling of applicants. This strategy is similar to choosing keywords from the job description to avoid automatic rejection.

But downplaying experience doesn’t mean disregarding it. In fact, Tina Garrett-Ragland, director of human resources for an automotive supply company in Roanoke, Virginia, suggests that overqualified candidates highlight their skills in the cover letter. “Downplaying your experience might get you an initial interview, but writing a good cover letter can produce better results,” she says. “Use the cover letter to explain why you want the job and how you will use your transferable skills to do the job well.”

A forthright cover letter marks overqualified candidates as thoughtful and honest early in the process—and may help to eliminate a prospective employer’s doubts about their early departure.

Effective communication. Effective communication helps an overqualified candidate reassure prospective employers about concerns they may have. The overqualified candidate has motivations, intentions, and reasons for wanting a particular job, and it’s up to him or her to explain what those are. An overqualified candidate may have many incentives in mind—such as change of pace, relocation, less stress, and more stability—when pursuing some jobs.

Overqualified candidates should emphasize how the organization benefits from their abundant skills. For example, an employer might value  overqualified candidates because of their high level of expertise and experience, sometimes across various fields. “These candidates are attractive because they possess professional maturity and can fill many roles inside an organization,” says Garrett-Ragland.

It is vital that overqualified candidates communicate to prospective employers their intention to stay long term, why they want the job, and how they plan to do the job well. Those who demonstrate motivation and an ability to pick up new skills are less likely to be known as overqualified candidates—and more likely to be called employees.
Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Outlook Quarterly, Spring 2011.