Here’s a question from Mister Overqualified.
What exactly does it mean when an interviewer asks, “Do you think you might be overqualified for this position?”
I am currently on the job search and have been on several interviews where I’ve had this question asked. I am a marketing professional, graphic designer, and entrepreneur. I began my career in the corporate world of marketing and ventured out on my own after a few years. I left the company because there really wasn’t much room for growth and they were consumed with corporate bullshit. I went out on my own doing freelance graphic design, marketing consulting, etc. I’ve been doing this type of work both full and part time for almost 4 years now and have loved every minute of it, but I am ready to get back into the full time working world. I know there are positions out there that I would really enjoy with companies that would be a good fit for me, but nothing seems to be panning out. So here’s what I’ve concluded on the above question and you can tell me if I’m right or way, way wrong.
I think a lot of companies are afraid to hire someone they feel might be overqualified because they fear that person will leave if/when something better (higher pay, better title, etc.) comes along. I was asked this question by a hiring manager who was close to my age on one job interview and they hired someone else. I got the feeling from her that she felt I could take her job and to be perfectly honest with you, I was qualified to do so. I think this is a no win question and one that I am getting really sick of hearing.
So in your opinion, what is the best way to answer this question if it’s a position you really want?
Dude, companies are afraid of making bad hiring decisions because it costs money. Since you don’t have a traditional career path, you look risky on paper. Two things.
- Recruiters aren’t asking you if you are overqualified. They are asking you to make a case for yourself. So make the best case possible, yo. Be likable, don’t be too needy, and give concise examples of why the job should be yours. Wow them.
- Since this question keeps coming up, why don’t you answer it before it’s asked? Take the opportunity to frame your answers in such a way to address concerns about salary, motivation, and your career trajectory. Own your answers. Tell your story. Then move on.
I hope that helps. Now let me shift gears and offer a piece of advice for recruiters. Don’t ask your candidates if they are overqualifed. That’s weaksauce. Asking someone if he’s overqualified for a job is an amateurish way of asking, “Are you desperate and needy for money? Are you taking this job because you can’t find anything else? Would you quit if you found something better?”
I really want one candidate — just one — to answer HELL YEAH I’M OVERQUALIFIED. HELL YEAH I NEED SOME MONEY. HIRE ME, ANYWAY. YOU CAN’T LOSE. I’M AWESOME.
I would hire that guy in a heartbeat. I want an employee with courage, balls, and a taste for danger.
{ 28 comments… read them below or add one }
The whole over-qualified thing comes up a lot, especially now when jobs can be tight. We ran an administrative assistant posting on craigslist and monster last month and received almost 400 resumes. Many people with years of senior management experience, masters degrees, Ph.D.s, etc. Clearly not what we are looking for in our admin assist.
Then there is the sales job opening we run, and we get people with 25 years sales-management experience. You sit with these people, because they are clearly qualified (overqualified), and you think, why are you applying for this job, now? Did you screw up big time? Did you get your ass fired? Do you not play well with others? You look at the “career trajectory” of the person, and there is this informal formula in your head of where the person SHOULD BE, and the job the are applying for NOW. If there is a huge gap, I am sorry, it just smells bad. I move on, next person, please!
There are way too many people out there to have to settle. I want the best fit I can find. As Laurie said, bad fits and/or wrong hiring choices cost money. Today’s bad-hire becomes my problem child of 6 months from now, and I am weary of progressive discipline.
Laurie, this is great advice! I definitely love the “HELL YEAH…” response! Maybe I’ll give it a shot. Afterall, what do I have to lose except the potential of working for an uptight and stuffy company that I wouldn’t enjoy working for anyway, right?!?
Dude, several things:
I agree that is poor form for a recruiter to ask if someone feels they are overqualified. That being said, I doubt it is the recruiters asking, but more likely the hiring managers who ask.
Which if that’s the case I do blame the recruiter for that. Great recruiters never put anyone in front of the hiring manager that isn’t top notch and that they don’t fully believe in. This also means that you take the time to manage any big concerns (like being overqualified) with the manager before the candidate interviews, thus helping everyone avoid looking foolish by asking such an inane question.
You are also right that the question is an attempt to have the candidate make a case for themself (not the best way to do it, clearly), but you are absolutely 100% correct in telling the dude that he’s clearly not making the case up front. So candidate person it is this simple: sell me (don’t tell me) how you are going to make money for the company, and as your manager, how you are going to make me look good. If you can convince me of that, your hired, everytime. As a marketing professional, you can’t successfully market yourself to the hiring manager, get back to fundamentals in how you present yourself.
Also dude, thanks for the linkback, you rock!
Great post and great comments, as usual, Laurie and readers. In my past, “overqualified” was also code for “I can’t afford you” or “you want too much money.” I wonder if that’s true any more?
Response to question: “Yes. Of course. I like belittling myself by applying for jobs which I could do with my eyes closed. Whereas you are clearly underqualified for your job which must be a lot more stretching and rewarding”.
Surely the actual question at the root of this is, “Are you going to sod off in 6 months when something better comes along and send me back to the hamster wheel of recruitment?”
I am on the opposite path as Mister Overqualified. I have had various jobs in which I either started out as overqualified, or outgrew and had no room for growing into a higher level position. As a result, I became a threat to managers who were either less qualified, skilled or talented. It has always ended badly.
I have learned that there are certain qualities in myself that make the typical career trajectory a jagged line for me. I am not comfortable waiting it out for the jobs that I am qualified for, because there are too many games to be played and too many uncomfortable sacrifices to be made. I, therefore am pursuing the freelance career that Mister Overqualified is wanting to give up.
I’d like to ask Mister Overqualified, if you loved every minute of the freelance work, why are you wanting to give it up? Why not ask for guidance in how to strengthen it and make it more profitable? I am guessing that the opportunities there are greater than returning to the corporate world, as outsourcing you kind of work seems more like the wave of the future.
It can also be that the interviewer is wondering if you really understand the reality of the job. I’ve had candidates apply for jobs that they’re way overqualified for because they misunderstood the level of the job, or the work they’d be doing — I’ve had candidates focus on one item from the job description that they’re excited about and ignore the nine items of grunt work that they don’t want to do. So it may be about make sure that the candidate really knows what they’d be signing up for.
If your wrong for job they should not even interview you, why even get into the “overqualified” discussion… I have hired lots of folks over the yrs. that are able to do more, and then they excel and get to do more (even if they take a step back at the start)…careers are no longer 90 degrees upward they zig and zag…
M
Weaksauce. Word to the mother.
Great advice Laurie,
You should do this for a living!
I agree, the people interviewing you are peceiving that you’re afraid of commitment. I also wonder what you say at the interviews when asked about why you left the corporate world to begin with. If you’re alluding to ANYTHING like you’ve said above (namely, being tired of bullshit), you’re going to set off all sorts of red flags. (Not that everyone else isn’t tired of the bullshit, too!)
Be really proactive before they even broach the subject. Explain why you KNOW you’re ready to go back to a monogamous relationship. Otherwise, they’re going to assume you’re a player. Asking if you’re overqualified is just a nice way of asking you why you think you’re ready to settle down. You really have to convince recruiters that you’re not just biding your time until the economy picks up again.
Candidates need to take the lead on this. It’s much more powerful when they out themselves – and it gives them control of the message. You do want control, don’t you Mr. O?
That said, get a clue. HR people can’t afford to make hiring errors. Is there anything else that comes back to bite HR on the butt so painfully? It ruins credibility with staff and execs. And they never forget!
In dollars and cents, throwing in possible awards resulting from litigation, I’d say the potential loss (profitability, productivity, salary, benefits, distraction, IP, etc.) in companies I’ve worked with ran from $250K to $1M. Hiring is HR on a tightrope 500 feet in the air without a net.
Next question:
So what if you are over-qualified, and are just taking this job ’cause that’s all you can find right now, and *will* jump at the next better paying gig that comes along?
Why is this writer ready to return to the corporate world if he loves freelance so much? Does he think that the BS quotient has lessened since he left?
Why wouldn’t he jump to a better job if it came along? Wouldn’t he be a fool not to? Why doesn’t he just apply for jobs for which he is qualified? Why should a company hire him when it can be picky?
I think there is more to this story.
Dear Overqualified,
Most companies shy away from people who have been on their own and are now looking for the security of a corporate job. They know that there is in fact corporate BS in every company which is difficult for someone who has worked on their own to deal with. All that being said, how about telling them that you have been out on your own which has been fun, but…
Being self employed has it’s drawbacks, big ones. You have been there done that and albeit it was fun it does not provide a stable income for you and your family, retirement, benefits or the opportunity to work with a team. One can only do so much in a day when working solo, whereas a team can produce for multiple projects. Your attitude should probably be ..everyone needs to be in business for themselves at some point. I have done that and proved i can but it’s time to come back into the corporate environment where i have the long term opportunity to be a part of and lead a team in the years to come as opposed to grinding out just what i can grind alone in a one man shop.
My thought is that recruiting is hesitant that you have the opportunity to jump ship to go it alone again as opposed to being overqualified so give them the reasons you won’t do that again.
One thing I know, from working primarily in IT, the positions tend to be more “plug-and-play”, and they want someone to hit the ground running with minimal downtime and handholding. I’ve seen the “overqualified” person get hired time and time again because if s/he’s coming in at the right price??– Get that Fool in Here, Stat!! And why is the position open in the first place?? Because the “underqualified” idiot you hired previously screwed everything up!!!! The overqualified in IT LOVE being problem solvers and saving the day— sort of “Don’t worry, kind people! IT Guru is here!!
There are valid reasons for people to take backward steps in their career. In my experience, those who have valid reasons for taking backward steps will self disclose those reasons before you ever get to an interview. This sounds really sad, but if the person seems overqualified for the job to which they are applying they either ARE overqualified and will leave you or they’re lying about or overstating their past experience and you shouldn’t hire them. If an interviewer is asking the questions using the words “are you overqualified,” he or she is asking a very appropriate question in a hamhanded and inneffective way. But an appropriate question nonetheless.
The best receptionist I ever worked with had at one time been a VP of marketing for a mid-sized firm and wanted a low-stress job with no travel that allowed her to watch all of her kids’ football and basketball games in person. BUT she stated this very clearly in the e-mail accompanying her resume, tailored her resume to highlight her relevant skills for the job, and made a point of explaining that in the first ten minutes of her interview. If you have reasons you want a job that your work history suggests would be a step backwards for you, you need to tailor your resume to bring out your strengths for whatever role this is and, as several other posters have suggested, take control of the message by answering the question before it’s asked.
@Dale You sit with these people, because they are clearly qualified (overqualified), and you think, why are you applying for this job, now? Did you screw up big time? Did you get your ass fired? Do you not play well with others? You look at the “career trajectory” of the person, and there is this informal formula in your head of where the person SHOULD BE, and the job the are applying for NOW. If there is a huge gap, I am sorry, it just smells bad. I move on, next person, please! Dale, you represent conventional recruiting wisdom. I get that. I’m thinking about all the good people I laid off at Pfizer. 20+ years IT experience. Not much opportunity in Terre Haute, Overland Park, Lincoln, Kalamazoo, or small towns in New Jersey and Connecticut. Where should they go? What should they do? So close to retirement — do they relocate to find a bigger opportunity? I’m sure they hate the idea of earning 58% less than what they were paid, but a job is a job is a job. Qualifications, not oversimplified assessments of qualifications, should be the discussion point.
@Bre LOL, go ahead, try it, see what happens. I’m curious.
@Puf That being said, I doubt it is the recruiters asking, but more likely the hiring managers who ask. You’re probably right. Candidates never know the difference, do they?
@China It’s also codeword for old, too.
@HRD Surely the actual question at the root of this is, “Are you going to sod off in 6 months when something better comes along and send me back to the hamster wheel of recruitment?” The answer is yes. Always yes.
@BZ Snap you are insightful.
@Alison So it may be about make sure that the candidate really knows what they’d be signing up for. That’s so true. I’ve often said, “You know this job sucks and pays $15/hr, right?”
@Mark F You’re right. Careers are like crazy zig zag puzzles — no one climbs up a ladder, anymore.
@Peopleshark Hahahahahaha, I’ve been waiting to use weaksauce in a post for AGES.
@Fran LOL, I should do this for a living…
@H.Aria Awesome. Thanks!
@Marsha Just because HR is under so much pressure in the hiring process doesn’t make it right. In fact, it’s not my job to make sure you hire a decent person. It’s your job as the supervisor.
@Dan So what if you are over-qualified, and are just taking this job ’cause that’s all you can find right now, and *will* jump at the next better paying gig that comes along? Why is that wrong? Wouldn’t you move for a better paying gig — or one with more opportunity? Companies would dump you in a heartbeat for someone cheaper, younger, faster. Why can’t employees do the same?
@Class There’s always more to the story. Maybe the guy has cancer and needs better benefits. Who knows.
@RecruitingMaven Thanks!
@MattyMat We call them firefighters. Here to save the day, right?
@scott This sounds really sad, but if the person seems overqualified for the job to which they are applying they either ARE overqualified and will leave you or they’re lying about or overstating their past experience and you shouldn’t hire them. Just to throw this out — isn’t everyone either overqualified or under-qualified for a role? Who hires 100% fit?
I have been unemployed now for over a year. Every job listing I read, I am either overqualified or under-qualified. On the ones I am under-qualified for, it is usually because I don’t have 10 years of experience in a very narrow skill set or knowledge set that only pays 60 – 70 percent of my former salary. So I have been applying for the ones that I am overqualified for. It is a lot easier to be confident in an interview when you know you can (or have already) done that job. But unfortunately, I am just seen as a lier or a loser now. I don’t want the hiring managers job (I’ve been a manager and it sucks) I just want a normal job where I can contribute. I am going to think about unsubscribing from this blog; it is getting too depressing.
Laurie of course candidates know the difference. Recruiters are unbelievably attractive, dashing, and captivating. If you look directly at our eyes, you could be lost forever. We’re the seraphim of the workplace
Please forgive me if I come off overly bitchy. I understand HR is a shitty job, and you really are trying your best to mitigate your costs and trouble. I even looked at going into HR and applied at Cornell, (didn’t get in). However, I feel there needs to be a greater understanding of where some of US are coming from.
I have a degree in Economics from a “good school.” I volunteered for a year in one of Oakland’s poorest districts, living off of $213 a week. Anyone with a GED could work for more than that there, but my contract stipulated that I could not work a second job so we can understand what it’s like to be “economically disadvantaged”. But the experience would be worth it, I thought.
After a year of that, I came home and worked a retail job for $8.15 an hour. I got employee of the month for the 3rd month I was there. But don’t I seem a little overqualified for that after recruiting, training and managing volunteers to complete people’s taxes? Or since I myself completed about 50 tax returns? Or getting $21k in grants, every single penny I applied for? Or be put in situations where you have to explain to hysterical people who work multiple jobs that they have to pay $1000 in taxes and penalties because they didn’t understand that you need to withhold more if you make more money and they need to talk to HR to file new W-4′s? I was interviewed at two places other than my retail job: Stanford University, and MetLife. The people at both that interviewed me were extremely kind, generous, and thorough. They got back to me within days, and even called me when they let me know I got rejected. (The Stanford position was an admin assistant.)
I stuck my retail job out for over a year until I took a chance at grad school (Univ. of Rochester) because there was no way up. School died due to money. Right now I’m freelancing making *less* than I did at my retail job, without benefits because I need SOMETHING to show that I’m driven, dedicated, and have an IQ above 75. (88th percentile if you were wondering. Yes, actually, I was disappointed, but not surprised.) It doesn’t seem to matter what I apply for, or the tactics I use: I just don’t have the networks. I’ve been at it for over two years. THAT’S why I’m happy to take a job as a teller so that a few years down the road I can become a Service Rep or a manager. Or I’ll take a job as an admin assistant at my local colleges, plus discounted/free classes.
So, am I overqualified? HELL YEAH I’M OVERQUALIFIED. HELL YEAH I NEED SOME MONEY. HIRE ME, ANYWAY. YOU CAN’T LOSE. I’M AWESOME.
Ahem. Sorry. I had a sudden spasm.
Anyway, I just wanted to share that. I love you all. Thanks for listening!
@dogfriend I’ll print what I wrote you in an email. You are neither a liar nor a loser. –> Now listen, some HR people are unnecessarily harsh. I hope your note gives them some perspective.
@econopete Holy shit, thank you. Perfect message for all of us, including me.
to the recruiter there will always be better candidates than you. it may not be true. but to the recruiter it is true. laurie’s advice is good but does not mean it will increase your chances dramatically. the universe is a strange place. maybe its telling you something. (get an mba? hahaha)
Laurie — you missed my point entirely. Yes. There are very few jobs for which a candidate is 100% qualified. A recruiter’s job is to make that match as closely as possible. The candidate’s job is to highlight where that match exists and to downplay reasons about which a hiring manager may have reservations for believing that to be a match made in heaven.
If your resume says “I’m a Master of the Universe who turns around failing businesses, but the job to which you’re applying is Master of the School Bus, who turns around yellow vehicles, you’ve got some splainin’ to do. That’s neither harsh nor kind. It’s advice on how to work the system, which I thought this person was seeking. This economy sucks. Looking for a job sucks. Telling people “no” all day sucks. Being told “no” all day sucks. I’m just suggesting that a frustrated overqualified candidate consider a change in approach if the method currently followed ain’t workin’. I mean, you keep pressing the “diet Coke button” 10,000 times you may eventually get a Spite to come out of the machine, but that happening has more to do with a screw up from the Coke machine person than it does with your persistence.
Writing a resume is hard. Writing a new resume every time you apply for a job is harder. But there’s LOTS of people distributing resumes right now. Read the job description and make sure YOUR resume says “this is THE candidate for this job.” Not, “here’s a freelance marketing person who’s slumming to file last year’s vendor invoices for us.” There’s nothing wrong with freelance marketing person who wants the security of a steady pay check. And there’s nothing wrong with taking a job because you need the scratch and don’t plan to stay with that employer any longer than is absolutely necessary. I’m not weighing in on the inherit rightness or wrongness of position of the employer or employee these types of transactions. I’m weighing in on the result not being what the writer is hoping for, my assessment for why I think he may be getting that result, and a suggestion for producing a different outcome. Ne C’est Pas?
Scott (and others who mentioned it) – I’d like to take the “100% qualified” comment and run with it for a second.
I’ve read several articles/blog posts in the last several months that have said essentially the same thing.
Which is: conventional wisdom USED to be that you’d hire an engaging candidate who was 85-90% there and let them stretch into the role.
But the new CW in this economy? Callbacks and interviews for “stretchers” aren’t happening – because recruiters ARE getting 100%, on-the-nose candidates in this market.
Laurie,
You misunderstood my comments. There’s absolutely nothing wrong with taking a job (or salary) “beneath you” if you have to and then splitting for the next best thing. But when a recruiter/manager asks if that’s your game plan, are you supposed to admit it? If not, how do you cover it up? (That’s what I was getting at.)
I was on a committee for a local nonprofit. We ran into this with on of the job candidates. It wasn’t that we were worrried that she would take the boss’ job – we were worried that she’d be bored and then be a pain in the ass. We were also worried that this would be her in-between job until she found something better.
Maybe you should apply for higher level jobs. I know that it may seem obvious, but maybe you ARE underestimating yourself.
Any applicant needs to read between the lines and realize what is really being asked. If you have the guts, then ask them if they are asking if you are overqualified. At the same time, you need to identify what your weaknesses might be and address them early on in the interview. I am a HR Director and my husband is going through the job search (laid off) and these are the things we are talking about. Don’t be wishy washy no matter if you are the recruiter, hiring manager or applicant.