By: Yang Chen
After graduating with a Ph.D. and moving to London, I started my job hunting journey. I have to admit, it is tough to get started with a limited network; however, after submitting applications for several jobs on sites such as LinkedIn.com, and Glassdoor, I began to get phone calls from job recruiters to discuss positions that are suitable for a fresh graduate with a Ph.D. in biomedical science. On one hand, many phone calls from job recruiters certainly added to my confidence that I will get the right job to start my new career in a new country; on the other hand, this situation also raised awareness that I should pay more attention to job recruiters. Here is some of what I have learned so far.
There are two major kinds of job recruiters: internal and external recruiters. Internal recruiters work inside an employer’s organization and usually directly report to hiring managers. You need to be very careful about internal recruiters, they are friendly but they are not “on your side”. It is important to be professional in every communication with them. They are your official contact for the hiring process. You can contact them if you have any concerns; however, you should not abuse this contact function and leave the image of being “difficult-to-work-with” because this will reduce the opportunity of getting a job offer. I only got one phone call from an internal recruiter. I had a thirty minute, business-like interview with the internal recruiter. The internal recruiter told me that she would give me further notice after reporting to the hiring manager in her organization. I am keeping my fingers crossed!
You will most often get phone calls from external recruiters, as I have. External recruiters are usually working in an agency that helps many different employers find employees. External recruiters are definitely “on your side”! You should be honest about your interests, experience and any gaps in knowledge. They will strategize you to present yourself in the best way. External recruiters may also have contacts with hiring managers, and they may know the insides of an employer’s organization and provide this information to you before your interview. External recruiters are usually the first representatives to send out your resume to employers and discuss potential job offers with employers. Because they do this part of the work for you, you need to be aware of where your resume is going. So, in the beginning, you should have a clear conversation with them that they may only send out your resume with your permission.
I have learned a lot during my job hunt and believe I will get an offer through working with job recruiters; I will certainly send them a note of thank you. I believe a good relationship with the right job recruiters will help start my career in this new country. Good luck, fellow job hunters!