4 Things to Look for When Reviewing a Candidate's Application

Attracting a wide pool of applicants is just the first step to success for recruiters. Once you have the pool of applicants, the next step is screening applications to see which job applicants can become potential new hires and be brought further into the recruiting process. Screening from a wide pool can be time-consuming and take a lot of effort.

Make it easier for yourself to be efficient by narrowing down what you want to screen applicants for. This way, you are prioritizing certain aspects of your applicants and narrowing down your list of potential hires efficiently. Keep reading for things to look for when reviewing a candidate’s application.

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Think about your ideal candidate

Before you start screening applications, you should consider what you picture as an ideal candidate for the role. What can an applicant bring to the table that would make them the person you ultimately hire?

Things you should consider when profiling an ideal candidate may include relevant skills and certifications, years of experience, experience with certain software, and so on.

Does their work history relate to the position you are hiring for?  

Every hiring situation is unique. You may be looking for someone who has the potential to grow into the role and company you are hiring for. In this situation, you may not be looking for an applicant who checks off all your boxes from the get-go – there’s probably a bit of wiggle room with what qualifications you are looking at.

On the other hand, you may be hiring for a role that needs to be filled immediately, where the applicant is expected to hit the ground running. In this case, you are likely going to be prioritizing qualifications that would make the applicant successful with minimal training upon hire.

Does their job history demonstrate their ability to be successful in the role you are hiring for? Whether it be certain processes they were assigned to or accomplishments they met, their work history can demonstrate if they are a good fit for the position you are hiring for.

Create a resume rating system 

If you are working through a large pool of candidates, creating a rating or ranking system to sort resumes as you go can be beneficial in the long run. As you look through applications, rank them based on how well you sort through candidates. When you do this you can get a clear picture of what you are working with when you can see what applications you want to prioritize pursuing, which ones pique your interest but may not fit all your current criteria, and which ones do not match at all.

If you find that your top picks are falling through, whether the interviews don’t go well or the applicants are pursuing other opportunities, you still have those applications that piqued your interest that you can follow up on rather than starting from scratch or having to review the applications all over again.

Spot red flags

When it comes to screening applications, you may be focusing on what an applicant brings to the table but fail to pay any attention to potential red flags that may be demonstrated within their application. A red flag can be just as telling as their qualifications.

One red flag that you can spot regardless of qualifications is how the resume is edited and presented overall. Is the resume full of grammatical errors and misspellings? While this does not directly touch on the applicant’s qualifications, it does show that they failed to pay attention to details on their resume or take the time to review and edit it before submitting.

When it comes to their work history, multiple red flags may pop up. Are there long gaps of unemployment? Gaps in employment could come from a variety of reasons and some explanations could erase any thought of a red flag, but it is something that should give you pause when screening applicants. A long gap of unemployment can stem from a personal situation, such as illness or a personal loss. It could also be a sign that an applicant is trying to hide something or is not being completely transparent about their work history. Whatever the case may be, if an unemployment gap is giving you pause, flag it as something to bring up during interviews if the applicant is someone you want to pursue still.

Similarly, look at the work history portion to see how long an applicant spent within a single position or company. Impressive companies and relevant job titles are not as effective if the applicant spent a very short time employed there. Job hopping can be a sign of a lack of commitment, but it can also be explained by an applicant getting unlucky with mass layoffs at their jobs. At the end of the day, you want to hire an applicant who is committed to the role and not someone who is going to jump at the next big opportunity.

Looking through applications can be a long and tedious process, but when you have key things you want to look out for in applications, you can help make the search more efficient.