10 FINANCIALLY REWARDING JOBS THAT PAY $100K A YEAR

 

ARE YOU SEARCHING FOR A FINANCIALLY REWARDING CAREER? THEN CHECK OUT OUR LIST OF 10 JOBS THAT PAY $100K A YEAR OR MORE AND REQUIRE A BACHELOR'S DEGREE OR LESS.

It's not always necessary to attend an expensive college or university for eight years in order to land a job that pays $100,000 a year. Many financially rewarding careers require four years or less of post-secondary training. This is great news, as you can get a high-paying job without accruing thousands of dollars in student loan debt.

Here are 10 jobs in various trades that are currently paying $100k a year or more.

INFORMATION SECURITY ANALYST

An information security analyst develops security measures that keep computer systems and networks protected from breaches. They also:

• Develop strategic plans for protecting computer systems
• Investigate security breaches when they occur
• Create recovery plans that will restore computer and data systems

Most information security analysts have a bachelor's degree in a computer science or technology field. Some potential employers also like applicants to have related work experience. The average salary of an information security analyst is $102,600 per year.

CHEMICAL ENGINEER

Another job that pays $100k a year or more is a chemical engineer. These individuals use mathematical and scientific principles to produce and manufacture fuels, pharmaceuticals, food, and other related products. They also develop health and safety procedures for those who work with these substances.

This position requires a bachelor's degree in chemical engineering or a related field. The current average yearly salary is $105,500.

AIR TRAFFIC CONTROLLER

Air traffic controllers have an extremely important job, as they supervise air traffic movement, directing planes as they arrive and depart from airports. The main focus of their job is to keep airplanes at a safe distance from each other.

This specialized position requires either a two- or four-year degree in aviation and makes an average of $129,750 per year.

SALES ENGINEER

Sales engineers are also one of the many jobs that pay $100k a year or more. These sales representatives typically market scientific and technological products to a variety of businesses and organizations. To perform well at their jobs, sales engineers need a wide range of skills, such as:

• Great sales skills
• Interpersonal skills
• Communication skills
• Customer service skills

A sales engineer may require a bachelor's degree in a technical field or equivalent training and experience, along with amazing sales skills. The average annual salary of a sales engineer is $103,710.

FINANCIAL MANAGER

A financial manager is responsible for the economic well-being of an organization or company. They perform a variety of tasks that include:

• Creating financial reports
• Directing investment activities
• Developing plans for long-term financial goals
• Advising in various financial situations
• Overseeing and maintaining budgets

A financial manager requires a bachelor's degree in any financial area. Many employers also like their financial managers to have experience in a related occupation, such as accounting, auditing, or financial analysis. This position pays, on average, $131,710 per year.

PLUMBER

Many highly skilled trades, like plumbers, don't usually require a secondary education degree. An individual can become a plumber by attending a vocational school or apprenticeship program. Plumbers perform several tasks, such as:

• Installing plumbing in new homes and commercial buildings
• Repairing leaky pipes, broken appliances, and damaged plumbing systems
• Working with pipelines and pipe systems that carry water, steam, liquids, or gases

A plumber can begin making $100,000 per year upon completion of their apprenticeship or after they earn a vocational school certificate.

ACTUARY

An actuary is an individual who works for insurance companies or other related companies. They use statistical data to estimate the financial costs of life-altering events such as car accidents and other catastrophic incidents. By creating strategies based on their findings, an actuary reduces the financial risk of life-altering events and improves profitability for these companies. An actuary position requires a bachelor's degree in mathematics, statistics, or a similar field. The average annual salary is $105,900.

COMPUTER NETWORK ARCHITECT

A computer network architect develops communication networks that meet both the current and future needs of commercial businesses and organizations. Also called network engineers, these individuals design and build:

• Data communication networks
• Local area networks (LANs)
• Wide area networks (WANs)
• Intranets

This position requires a computer-related bachelor's degree and some employers also prefer information technology experience. The average salary for a computer network architect is $120,520.

ART DIRECTOR

An art director is a creative professional that oversees the visual style of various media outlets, including printed publications, product packaging, movies, and television. They work alongside many other creative talents, such as artists, writers, and photographers. This position often requires a bachelor's degree in an art-related field and can make, on average, $100,890 per year.

MEDICAL OR HEALTH SERVICES MANAGER

Another role that often pays $100k a year or more is a medical or health services manager. This important job supervises any type of medical office, such as hospital departments, private medical practices, or long-term care facilities. A medical manager conducts a wide range of tasks, such as:

• Coordinating staff schedules
• Maintaining budgets
• Creating efficient record-keeping methods
• Providing efficient services that result in timely and compassionate patient care

A medical or health services manager should have a bachelor's degree in health care management. Their typical annual salary is $101,340.

As you can see, it is possible to earn $100,000 or more per year with a four-year degree or less. If you're currently looking for a well-paying job, take advantage of our job search tools by creating a profile on CareerBuilder today.

Job Termination and Your Resume

 No matter how you left, you need to present the best accomplishments you made at the job to prospective employers.

Your employer just let you go. You need to find another job, but how should you address the termination on your resume? It depends on whether you were laid off versus fired, but a few rules apply across the board.

First, consider that the days when you signed on with an employer and stuck around until retirement are gone. The latest figures from the Bureau of Labor Statistics suggest the average worker’s tenure with one employer is 4.2 years. Employers are more understanding when they see job changes than in past, but concern persists on how to explain it on the resume. Here’s how to handle it.

Don't Mention It

A resume should present your qualifications in a positive light. Including details of a job loss—particularly if you were fired—is not going to do you any favors.

No matter how sour your termination and interest in telling your side of the story, the resume is not the place for gory details. Let the resume do its job of opening doors, and you can explain the situation at job interviews.

Don’t Fudge the End Date

If your job is officially over, resist the urge to keep the position listed as “to present” on your resume, giving the impression that you’re still employed. The job termination will eventually come to light and hiring managers might think you tried to mislead them.

Explain a Layoff in Your Cover Letter

If your termination was due to a layoff rather than a performance-related issue, consider mentioning it in your cover letter. You can write something like this:

As you may have read, (company name) announced a round of layoffs, and my position was eliminated. My performance has consistently been rated as outstanding, and I am looking forward to repeating my record of success for my next employer... 

Focus on Your Accomplishments

Your resume should impress potential employers by highlighting your accomplishments and value proposition on your resume. Even if hiring managers are wondering why you left your job, your resume should be strong enough for you to receive interview invitations.

When updating your resume, it can be difficult to put your emotions aside and write a compelling description for the employer that let you go. But this is exactly what you need to do.

If you're stuck, seek the opinions of former colleagues who respect your work and ask about your performance. They might remind you about accomplishments that you took for granted or forgot about.

Here are questions to consider regarding your performance:

• Did you take on responsibilities outside your original position scope? Did you juggle multiple projects while maintaining the highest emphasis on quality?
• What were your strongest contributions to your employer? In what ways did you excel at your job, and how did your employer benefit from having you on board? Specific, measurable outcomes have the biggest impact.
• Did you go above and beyond the call of duty? How did you contribute to bottom-line results?
• What types of challenges did you face? What did you do to overcome these challenges? How did your performance benefit your employer?
• Did you implement processes or procedures that improved efficiency? Were you known for fast or accurate work output?
• Were you part of a team that was recognized with awards or accolades? Did you receive positive commendations by your supervisors (or clients, customers, vendors, co-workers, etc.)?

Boost Your Resume Confidence (for Free)

Whether you were laid off versus fired, it's completely understandable if you don't feel 100% confident about your resume, given the circumstances. Once you're ready to get out there, let Monster take over. Want to double-check your resume is up to the challenge? You can get a free resume evaluation from Monster. We can show you some extra measures you can take to correct any errors and improve any weak spots. Don't be discouraged; take action and start on the path to a great new job.

BODY LANGUAGE DO'S AND DON'TS IN THE INTERVIEW

 

DON'T LET YOUR BODY SEND THE WRONG MESSAGE. LEARN THE BEST BODY LANGUAGE TO GET YOU THE JOB.

Your heart feels ready to leap out of your chest. Beads of sweat build on your forehead. Your mind is racing. It's not a full-blown interrogation -- although it may feel like it -- it's just a job interview. While it's no secret that job interviews can be nerve-racking, a lot of job candidates spend a significant amount of time worrying about what they will say during their interview, only to blow it all with their body language. The old adage, "It's not what you say, it's how you say it," still holds meaning, even if you're not talking. You need to effectively communicate your professionalism both verbally and nonverbally. Because watching your nonverbal cues, delivering concise answers and expressing your enthusiasm at once can be difficult when you're nervous, here's a guide to walk you through it:

Have them at "hello"
Before you walk into the interview, it's assumed that you will have done the following: prepared yourself by reading up on the company and recent company news; practiced what you'll say to some of the more common interview questions; and followed the "what to wear on your interview" advice. So you're ready, right? Some hiring managers claim they can spot a possible candidate for a job within 30 seconds or less, and while a lot of that has to do with the way you look, it's also in your body language. Don't walk in pulling up your pantyhose or readjusting your tie; pull yourself together before you stand up to greet the hiring manager or enter their office. Avoid a "dead fish" handshake and confidently -- but not too firmly -- grasp your interviewer's hand and make eye contact while saying hello.

Shake your hand, watch yourself
If you are rocking back in your chair, shaking your foot, drumming your fingers or scratching your... anything, you're going to look like the type of future employee who wouldn't be able to stay focused, if even for a few minutes. It's a not a game of charades, it's a job interview. Here's what to do (and not do):

Don't:

Rub the back of your head or neck. Even if you really do just have a cramp in your neck, these gestures make you look disinterested.

Rub or touch your nose. This suggests that you're not being completely honest, and it's gross.

Sit with your armed folded across your chest. You'll appear unfriendly and disengaged.

Cross your legs and idly shake one over the other. It's distracting and shows how uncomfortable you are.

Lean your body towards the door. You'll appear ready to make a mad dash for the door.

Slouch back in your seat. This will make you appear disinterested and unprepared.

Stare back blankly. This is a look people naturally adapt when they are trying to distance themselves.

Do:

Sit up straight, and lean slightly forward in your chair. In addition to projecting interest and engagement in the interaction, aligning your body's position to that of the interviewer's shows admiration and agreement.

Show your enthusiasm by keeping an interested expression. Nod and make positive gestures in moderation to avoid looking like a bobblehead.

Establish a comfortable amount of personal space between you and the interviewer. Invading personal space (anything more than 20 inches) could make the interviewer feel uncomfortable and take the focus away from your conversation.

Limit your application of colognes and perfumes. Invading aromas can arouse allergies. Being the candidate that gave the interviewer a headache isn't going to do anything in your favor.

If you have more than one person interviewing you at once, make sure you briefly address both people with your gaze (without looking like a tennis spectator) and return your attention to the person who has asked you a question.

Interruptions can happen. If they do, refrain from staring at your interviewer while they address their immediate business and motion your willingness to leave if they need privacy.

Stand up and smile even if you are on a phone interview. Standing increases your level of alertness and allows you to become more engaged in the conversation.

Say Goodbye Gracefully
After a few well-thought-out questions and answers with your interviewer, it's almost over, but don't lose your cool just yet. Make sure your goodbye handshake is just as confident now as it was going in. Keep that going while you walk through the office building, into the elevator and onto the street. Once safely in your car, a cab or some other measurable safe distance from the scene of your interview, it's safe to let go. You may have aced it, but the last thing you want is some elaborate end-zone dance type of routine killing all your hard work at the last moment.

To Pass a Personality Test, Use Your Professional Persona

 It's often possible to tailor your answers to meet an employer's expectations.

Many abstract forces influence who succeeds and who fails in the hiring process. But there's one component that gets pretty personal.

For decades, companies have tried to measure job candidates' personalities, searching for people who will perform best and last longest. Hiring managers often administer personality tests to identify candidates whose tendencies make them a good match for a specific role and the company overall.

Once taken via pen and paper, many of these assessments have moved online, and modern technology has even enabled the creation of video tests that use algorithms to allegedly distill workers' personalities by detecting minute facial expressions and analyzing word choice.

It's important to approach personality tests thoughtfully, since your answers affect your chances of getting hired. One strategy for success is sticking as close as possible to your professional persona.

[See: 16 Low-Stress Jobs.]

What Personality Tests Try to Measure

Personality is a difficult concept to define. Hiring managers use the term to refer to the "behavioral tendencies" of individual job candidates, says Ann Marie Ryan, professor of organizational psychology at Michigan State University.

The tendencies that interest employers include assertiveness, dependability, humility, honesty, extroversion, creativity, openness, agreeableness, narcissism and authoritarianism, says industrial-organizational psychologist Leaetta Hough, founder of the Dunnette Group, a consulting firm. Those traits don't exist in a vacuum, she adds; they depend on "the context in which someone is going to be operating," which in this case is the workplace.

That dependency on environment is one reason why these tendencies are more like "learnable behaviors" than fixed traits, argues Martin Yate, certified personnel consultant and author of several career advice books and audio books. After all, he says, many people follow professional norms at the office but not in their personal lives.

Whether innate or acquirable, hiring managers care about these tendencies because they want to know in advance which applicants are likeliest to show up on time, work well in teams, comply with rules, make smart decisions, fit with the office culture, think creatively and stick around for many years.

It's up for debate how much personality actually predicts about workers, Ryan says. Job performance depends more on skills and technical ability, while retention often hinges on monetary incentives.

But talent and compensation aren't the only factors that motivate worker behavior, Hough says: "Most people are more complex than that."

Test Formats

To measure that complexity, employers turn to personality tests. They come in many forms, some more valid than others. Some companies rely on assessments that aren't designed for hiring, Hough says, while others use products that have been carefully vetted for that purpose.

In his book "The Ultimate Job Search Guide," Yate identifies several major types of assessments that job seekers face. Objective tests ask takers to rate their own traits using yes/no, true/false or agree/disagree answers to questions. Projective tests ask takers to respond to ambiguous prompts by completing sentences and describing pictures. Aptitude tests attempt to rate workers' potential to learn, while integrity tests purport to assess their honesty and morality.

Commonly used tests include:

• Hogan Personality Inventory
• California Psychological Inventory
• PDI Employment Inventory
• Adaptive Employee Personality Test

The response format differs depending on the test. When faced with the following statements, for example, takers may be asked to agree or disagree, mark true or false, or indicate which of two choices better describes them:

• I like organizing information.
• I like doing things on the spur of the moment.
• I don't hesitate to make decisions.
• I usually keep my feelings to myself.

Practice versions of some personality assessments are available online.

During the hiring process, employers may not refer to these tasks as personality tests, instead calling them assessments or inventories that measure culture fit, aptitude or critical thinking. Hiring managers rarely inform applicants about their scores.

Test-Taking Strategies

Job seekers can improve their chances of getting hiring by enhancing their resumes, honing their interview techniques and solidifying their technical skills. But can they also boost their scores on hiring personality tests?

Experts say yes.

The key is "learning to separate our private from our professional selves," Yate explains. That means test takers should not necessarily go with their gut responses to assessment questions, but instead ask themselves, "How has my experience as a professional taught me to think and respond to this situation?"

Some test formats make it fairly obvious how to provide a "socially desirable response," Ryan says.

For example, if a test asks a job seeker to "agree" or "disagree" to the statement "I tend to pay attention to details," Ryan explains, "both of us know what answer an employer wants."

Savvy test makers design assessments that are trickier to game. Some use "forced choice" questions that present takers with two statements of seemingly equal desirability and ask them to choose which better describes them. For example, someone might have to choose between "I like organizing information" and "I like doing things on the spur of the moment." Others repeat questions using different words and syntax to measure whether takers answer consistently, therefore demonstrating integrity. For example, the same test might solicit responses to the following statements:

• It is hard for me to make the right decision.
• I feel confident when making decisions.
• I don't hesitate to make decisions.

Job seekers can still improve their outcomes on these clever tests by answering in ways that exhibit "good performance on the job, good relations with your peers and a respectful and malleable attitude toward the needs of management," Yate says.

Test takers should keep in mind that employers may seek different tendencies depending on the duties of the open job. For an auditing position, a company may look for someone analytical who follows rules. For a marketing job, a business may want an outgoing worker with strong communication skills and emotional intelligence.

Not everyone endorses the strategy of tailoring answers to fit what employers might want. Workers may fare better in the long run if they answer in ways authentic to their personal lives, Ryan believes.

"My advice is, you might as well be honest," she says. "Do you want a job that makes you do the opposite of what you like to do? It's not to your advantage to try to be someone who you're not. You're not going to sustain it and you're not going to be happy."

But ultimately, each worker must decide how to approach a personality assessment.

"These tests can help you win or lose a job," Yate says. "If you want the job, there's no point in telling them what they don't want to hear."

THE FAST GROWING JOBS THAT WILL NEVER GO AWAY

12 Fast-Growing Jobs That Will Never Go Away

As technology grows and we become more comfortable with things like automation and AI, some people are concerned about job security. While technology will undoubtedly change the way certain jobs are performed and how much human intervention is needed, there are jobs that will always require a human touch.

So, what jobs will never go away? Fortunately, there are many jobs that can only be performed by humans. Furthermore, even jobs that can be made more effective by automation or AI will still need humans to work side-by-side with technology.

Before you start worrying about robots monopolizing the job market, let’s take a look at what jobs will never go away so we can get a better picture of future career outlooks.

Source: Unsplash Alt text: Dentist examining a patient’s teeth

What Jobs Are At Risk of Replacement?

While there are jobs that surely won’t disappear anytime soon, there are others that are at greater risk of being replaced . These jobs won’t necessarily disappear, but due to automation, they might see a dramatic change in how they are performed and how many people are needed to fill these types of jobs.

Jobs that involve a lot of routines and are repetitive are most at risk, and these include jobs like telemarketers, bank tellers, or postal service workers. If a job can be done cheaper and more efficiently using automation, machines, AI, or a combination of different technologies, then it stands to reason that business owners would be more likely to cut out human workers and replace them with a more cost-effective option.

12 Jobs That Will Never Go Away

It’s not all doom and gloom. There are plenty of jobs that won’t be replaced, at least not fully, by technology. In fact, a lot of these jobs are actually projecting a lot of growth over the next few years.

So, if you’re wondering if your current job is safe or you’re looking for your next stable career, here are a few options to choose from.

1. Social Workers

Social workers, counselors, therapists, and psychologists are not at risk of having their jobs replaced for the simple reason that these jobs rely on human touch and human emotion.

When dealing with mental health, it would be irresponsible to leave it all to AI or an automated program to handle such a delicate situation. Since workers in this field rely on forming human relationships and developing a complex understanding of different behaviors, there’s little chance that social workers, therapists, or workers in similar fields will see their jobs overtaken by machines.

2. Educators

While AI is being used more and more in education, it is unlikely that educators themselves will see their jobs replaced by technology. Teachers work closely with their students to offer individualized education. Technology is often used in classrooms to help teachers and engage more students, but an in-person teacher offers more value and enrichment that AI simply can’t provide.

Aside from giving students a more hands-on learning experience, educators provide empathy and develop personal relationships with their students, and this can’t be replicated with automation or any technology.

3. Medical Workers

Just like in schools, AI is being used in medicine to make doctors’ lives easier and to improve the efficiency of administration and even medical procedures. Still, employees like doctors, nurses, and physical therapists can’t be replaced by automated processes.

Doctors in the future are likely to work a lot more closely with technology in order to provide their patients with the most innovative and error-free procedures. However, this will only free up more time for medical workers to focus on other aspects of their jobs, like diagnosing and working with patients.

Careers such as physical therapy rely on professionals assessing the needs of individual patients and offering treatments that are unique to each person, so this is another reason why automation won’t be able to take over this field.

Source: Unsplash Alt text: doctor in surgery room checking status of patient

4. Marketing, Design, and Advertising Professionals

Machines are good at completing repetitive tasks in a shorter amount of time than humans. However, what they’re not good at is creative and critical thinking.

Marketers, designers, and advertisers all rely on their ability to create and think up new ways to communicate their messages.

Sure, these professionals can rely on automation to gather and help them analyze data, but when it comes to creating actionable plans based on that data, it will still fall on communications specialists to come up with the ideas that fuel a campaign.

5. Data Scientists

A data scientist’s job might change in the future, but it’s unlikely to go away altogether. Since data scientists are now less concerned with gathering data points thanks to automation, they can now focus their efforts more on analyzing and understanding the information collected.

Computers are excellent at gathering tons of information in a short amount of time relative to humans, but they’re unable to fully interpret the data in a meaningful way.

6. Dentists

Most people don’t find going to the dentist an enjoyable experience, however, can you imagine robots prying in your mouth instead of humans? Of course, dentists use technological tools to help them in their day-to-day work, but patients know that on the other end of those tools is a certified dentist with a human touch with the ability to make your visit just a little less daunting.

More than that, even if machines were able to take over certain procedures, as doctors, they aren’t able to diagnose problems and decide the best course of treatment.

7. Conservation Scientists

Conservation scientists oversee environmental and forest conservation activities, such as protecting habitats and planning for harvesting and the use of forest resources. In the future, as the environment changes, this job will see a higher demand in manpower.

Automation and AI can help with certain day-to-day tasks in the job — however, conservation scientists need to be available in order to accurately preserve our environments and forests and make quick changes or adjustments based on the environment.

8. Cybersecurity Experts

As technology becomes more enmeshed in nearly every profession, so does the need for cybersecurity. Many companies rely on online systems and IT programs to perform their regular tasks, so it’s more important than ever to ensure those channels are secure from cyber-attacks.

Cybersecurity experts are becoming more in demand due to workplaces relying more and more on digital operations. Since these cybersecurity experts are the ones who create the AI or programs necessary to protect a company’s servers, it’s not likely that these jobs will be replaced with machines.

9. Artists

If there was ever a field that requires more of human touch, it’s the arts. Painters, actors, directors, musicians, writers, and all other types of artists create personal works that can’t be replicated by machines. We rely on filmmakers, actors, and directors to create imaginative worlds and stories and bring them to life.

Other types of creators like visual artists or musicians rely on raw emotion to create their work. Technology can try to replicate certain types of art, but without human emotion or creativity behind works of art, can it really be as meaningful?

10. Dieticians and Nutritionists

Dieticians and nutritionists work closely with individual clients to understand their health concerns and create nutritional plans that are based on their needs. Since dieticians and nutritionists help create plans based on illnesses like obesity, diabetes, or even based on age, it’s important that there is a personal and human element to these jobs.

While diets can be automated, it’s difficult to tailor them to each person’s individual needs.

Furthermore, humans are better able to promote healthier lifestyles than robots or machines since they have the personal and human experience to back it up.

11. Chefs

You may have seen videos of robots making simple foods like pancakes or omelets. While these videos and the robots themselves are impressive, it can’t be compared to food prepared with love, passion, and expertise. Chefs combine their passion and creativity for food with their expertise so that they can create new and exciting menu items.

Robots may be able to help in the future with jobs in the fast-food industry that tends to value efficiency over quality, but they can’t duplicate the way chefs combine different flavors to create unique dishes.

12. Fitness Trainers

A lot of people rely on tools like fitness watches or generated fitness programs to maintain a healthy lifestyle. However, as fun and engaging as these tools are, it’s impossible for these or other technologies to replace the value of an in-person fitness trainer.

Athletic trainers offer their clients motivation, enthusiasm, and personalized training to help them reach their goals. If you’re training on an athletic or professional level, then trainers are irreplaceable as they coach you through competitions and many aspects of your life, something that technology is unable to do.

The Bottom Line

Now that you have a better idea of what jobs will never go away, you can make a more informed decision on what direction you’d like your career to go in. Working with technology is nothing to be afraid of, and it’s likely that most jobs will involve a certain level of automation.

Ghosted After an Interview? Here’s What to Do

Why don’t companies respond after an interview and what can you do about it?

Stop us if you’ve heard this one before: You just nailed your job interview, and the hiring manager promises to get back to you soon. But then two weeks go by, you haven’t heard anything, and the hiring manager is not returning your calls or emails.

Have you been ghosted after an interview? What’s your next step? Consult a psychic? Pull out the Ouija board? Let’s look at the phenomenon of candidate ghosting, why it happens, and how to respond.

Ghosting Is Not Just for Dating

If you’ve been left holding the (empty trick-or-treat) bag after an interview, you’re not alone. Companies frequently leave job seekers in the dark. More than 75% of all job candidates have been ghosted after an interview by at least one company during their job search. That’s slightly better than the stats about being ghosted after a Tinder date.

When Should an Employer Get Back to You After an Interview?

How long should you expect to wait until you know whether you’ve gotten a second interview, a job offer, or a rejection? At what point do you start looking for signs you’ve been ghosted after an interview?

Most non-apparition employers follow up with phone interview candidates anywhere from three to 10 business days. After interviewing in person, a response can take as long as two weeks, especially if you’re likely to receive an offer. At this point, the hiring manager needs time to talk with HR and other team members, get budget approval, and a host of other details.

If they don’t get back to you within that time frame, you might have been ghosted.

Why Do Employers Ghost After an Interview?

Even companies with good intentions can have many reasons for not contacting you in a timely manner after an interview. Here are the most common reasons why you were ghosted after an interview that have nothing to do with you:

• The company is still interviewing other candidates.
• They promoted someone already at the company into the job.
• The person who interviewed you, or a key decision-maker who has to approve the hire, is out of office, busy, ill, or (oh no!) left the company.
• The company has an unexpected urgent matter that has pushed hiring to the bottom of the to-do list.
• A significant change at the company put hiring on hold. This can be a sudden budget cut, business downturn, or a merger with another company.
• They are waiting to hear from another candidate they offered the job to.
• Your info got lost.
• They don’t have a procedure in place to send rejection emails.

Can You Prevent Being Ghosted After an Interview?

Ultimately, the company is in control when it comes to deciding whether to contact job candidates. But there are some steps you can take to encourage them to respond to you, and for you to know when to give up the ghost.

How to Prevent Being Ghosted: During the Interview

Most interviews end with the hiring manager asking if you have any questions. If they do, this is the perfect opportunity to ask about the hiring timeline. If they don’t invite an inquiry, take the initiative and ask for their intentions in one of these polite but direct ways:

• When do you expect to make a decision on this position?
• When should I expect to hear back from you?
• What is the next step in your interview process?
• When are you looking for the person in this position to start work?

How to Prevent Being Ghosted: After the Interview

You can’t conjure up an employer’s call after your interview, but there are some things you can do to increase the chances they’ll remember you.

Send a Thank You Note

You know you should always send a thank you after an interview. (Seriously, you do know, don’t you?) This is to thank the person or people for taking the time to interview you. It also makes you look professional.

Another great reason to send a thank you note is to remind the company that you exist and are waiting to hear from them. This is especially important if they’re interviewing a long list of candidates. If you were the first one in the door, you might be the last one they remember. Be prompt with your thank you, sending it within 24 hours of your interview.

Send a Follow-Up Email

If you asked about their hiring timeline in your interview and it’s getting close or the deadline has passed, you can send another email. Say you were expecting to hear from them by now and are anticipating a response. Ask if they need any additional information from you to make their decision. You can mention that you’d like to know if you should pursue other job opportunities. This shows enthusiasm and initiative and will jog their memory if your info has slipped through the cracks.

Whatever you do, resist the urge to haunt them with repeated correspondence, or an angry response to their silence while you wonder why do companies ghost you after an interview.

Here is a sample follow-up email when you think you might have been ghosted after an interview:

Dear Mr. Jones,

I want to thank you once again for taking time to meet with me on (date.) I enjoyed our conversation and could see myself in the (title) position. I had expected to hear from you by now, so I’m reaching out to see if there has been a change in your hiring plans or you need additional information from me. I would appreciate a response so I know whether to pursue other opportunities.

Best regards,

Kate Smith

Have You Been Ghosted? Here’s What to Do

When it’s been several weeks and you’ve gotten no response to your emails, you’ve probably been ghosted after your interview. Don’t let it affect your ego. In this case, it’s not you, it’s them. Do you want to work for a company that leaves people hanging or isn’t organized enough to follow up with candidates? Move on and continue your job search until you find a company that’s a better fit.

And while you’re waiting for a response, you should always continue to send resumes and accept interview invitations. You never know when a better opportunity will present itself.

Keep Up a Spirited Job Search With Monster

Don’t let being ghosted after an interview stop your search. To improve your chances of a recruiter or hiring manager finding you for the perfect job, be sure to fill out a Monster profile. Monster won’t ghost you! We’ll continue to send you relevant job postings and career advice until you find your fit.