Applying When Overqualified
By Marty Nemko
In this lousy job market, it can be tempting to apply for jobs for which you’re overqualified.
Perhaps you shouldn’t. You may well be sad doing a lower-level job and reporting to someone you view as your inferior. And in the future, when you want to apply for a higher-level job, employers will wonder why you took a step down: Were you a bad employee? Did you have a nervous breakdown? Cancer?
If you do decide to apply when overqualified, in your cover letter and early in job interviews, preempt employers’ objections to your being overqualified. Examples:
- Although I’ve been a manager, I also enjoy being an individual contributor.
- My having been a higher-level employee is a plus–not only will those higher-level skills be of use in this job, I can empathize with the pressures you, as a boss, face.
- If you’re concerned that someone with my background might jump to another job, know that I’m not a job hopper–When I accept a position, my plan is to stay for at least two years. Hopefully by then, you’ll see that I’m worthy of a promotion.
U.S. News & World Report called Marty Nemko, “career coach extraordinaire.” The San Francisco Bay Guardian named him “The Bay Area’s Best Career Coach.” In his 26th year in private practice, he’s coached 3,700 people and enjoys a 96% client satisfaction rate. He holds a Ph.D from U.C. Berkeley and subsequently taught in its graduate school. 600+ of his published articles plus an active blog are free on www.martynemko.com.
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