Reapply to job that rejected me?

amother

Ruby

Mon, Dec 26 2016, 10:03 am

About a year and a half ago I applied for a job. The main advantage of that job is that it's very close to my house. I went through the interview process and they told me they thought I was a good fit but they weren't ready to make a hiring decision, and strung me along for a few months until they finally hired someone else. I know who they hired and think I have better qualifications but of course that's their judgment call. I'm not upset so much that they didn't hire me but that they strung me along for a few months. They could have just been upfront if they weren't interested. Anyway the whole experience left a very bad taste in my mouth.

In the meantime I found another job, which I think is a better fit in every way except that it is a long commute--almost an hour drive each way. Other than that I'm happy with the job, the schedule, the pay, the workload etc.

Now the first job again posted an opening. I don't know if I should bother to reapply. It would be nice to work close to my house. On the other hand I don't know why they rejected me in the first place and could be they would not want me now for the same reason. And I don't know if being closer to home outweighs the disadvantages of working for them.

I"m under no pressure to leave the job I have now except that I'd like to be closer to home. Should I reapply to the other job? Or just wait for another opening? (Openings don't come that frequently in my field, and I don't want to be job hopping every two years. I'd rather wait until the right thing comes along.)

amother

Ivory

Mon, Dec 26 2016, 10:25 am

I think there's 2 potential issues:

1. You don't want to get strung along again for a few months. I suppose that's avoidable because they know you pretty well from the last interviewing process so maybe that's won't happen this time.

2. Your pride. It will hurt if you try again and they hire someone else, but that's life. It seems that you know your abilities and you are confident and if for whatever reason they go with someone else, then it just wasn't meant to be. This reason shouldn't stop you from applying.

The bottom line is that if you believe you would be happier in this other job, you should apply. If you don't, you will always wonder if you might have got the job this time. Like the cliche goes, you really have nothing to lose. (Almost nothing)

amother

Lime

Mon, Dec 26 2016, 10:32 am

I say go for it. Even if they hire you, you can still decide that ultimately you'd rather stay where you are, and if they don't, well, you've been through it before. And since you already have a job, you're in a totally different situation anyway. A relative of mine actually applied for and got a job from a place that had FIRED her a few years earlier. She had been fired for poor performance, but that ultimately led to her rethinking her career (realized that the original field was not a good fit for her) so she trained for something else, and the company hired her for that type of job which is in a totally different department and she's still there. Obviously, she's a good worker in general, the "poor performance" was specific to the job, not general work habits.

amother

Ruby

Mon, Dec 26 2016, 10:38 am

My theory is that they didn't hire me because they didn't think I was a good fit, but since my qualifications are so good they couldn't reject me outright so they strung me along until they found someone they thought was a better fit. If I was rejected just because of "fit" that means there's something in my personality or demeanor they didn't like, and that's not something I can easily change and also makes me hesitant to reach out to them again.

amother

Gray

Mon, Dec 26 2016, 11:15 am

I wouldn't reapply. It's really unprofessional and actually quite wrong to string a potential employee along for any reason and ultimately I think it's probably a reflection on the company as a whole. If you're doing well in your current job, would it be an option to cut your hours or work some time from home? That can offset the long commute and would be a better bet for your long term career.

33055

Mon, Dec 26 2016, 11:17 am

amother wrote:

Right, but you don't know why the other fit was better. It could be salary requirements or it could be the other candidate knew someone on the company.

What is the downside of applying?

Talya

Mon, Dec 26 2016, 11:23 am

amother wrote:

They can reject you for whatever reason. They don't need an excuse. Stringing you along is not ok. And if they didn't like your personality then they probably wont like it any better now. The only way to get around that is hope it's someone else doing the hiring this time. But why would you want to put yourself through that if you are very happy at your job? Wait for another opening close to home that didn't reject you after stringing you along.

Fox

Mon, Dec 26 2016, 11:54 am

Why not apply again? As Lime Amother said, you're in a completely different situation -- you already have a job that you're more-or-less happy with.

I don't consider the "stringing along" issue to be a deal-breaker. When a company announces a job opening, they're focusing on their schedule and priorities, not those of the job-seekers. It may seem crazy to someone who desperately needs to find a job and who is sitting by the phone waiting, but it's not uncommon for a company to take a few months to make a final decision. The decision often involves reaching an agreement among multiple individuals, each of whom has his/her own responsibilities. Also, the high cost of terminating a "bad fit" employee and starting the process over again makes companies skittish and indecisive.

If the company is expanding, they may be thrilled to have you apply again. It sounds like they really liked you, but they only had one job available. Now they have another job, and you might be perfect for it!

amother

Mint

Mon, Dec 26 2016, 12:13 pm

I'd reapply. You're in a strong position since you have a job you like. You don't say whether you were employed last time, but you certainly have more experience and possibly additional qualifications now. If/when you're offered the job, you can talk to people and decide if you want it, but you never know what will happen till you apply. Also, I've been in your place. I barely got a nibble from a place I now work when I applied several years ago. It turns out that 2 higherups disagreed about which qualifications to prioritize. It stunk for me but when they needed someone else, they realized they needed what I offered.