A botch?
Well, that ended kind of badly.
I submitted my resume to over a dozen places at a job fair recently, and recieved an e-mail from someone asking me to confirm having an interview ... yesterday. Only, due to techological malfunctions and the sheer volume of stuff I had to do for classes over the weekend, I didn't recieve it until tonight.
I went ahead and e-mailed the person back on the slim hopes that they're not too annoyed with me, but my hopes are fairly low at this point. And it's kind of frustrating to me, too, especially because I normally pride myself on being very quick at replying to business-related e-mails, because with graduation ticking down, every opportunity is one that I want to follow to its fullest.
The fact that this totally botched is rather vexing. Hopefully, they'll give me another chance, but man, my own expectations are low at this point. (Even on the chances that they have a grace period, replying THIS late to the e-mail in question probably doesn't reflect too well upon me.)
Hopefully some of the other interviews I'm trying to set up or schedule will pan out better. Here's to the triumph of hope over experience every time!
How many days did the email sit waiting for you? If the recruiter sent it to you just a day or two before they expected you to respond, then they didn't give you enough time and probably won't hold the delay against you. On the other hand, if they sent it a week before you responded, then you probably will have to overcome some negative feelings.
But either way, you're probably still in good shape. If they ask you to interview, then you can be sure that they are still interested. Their time is precious and they won't have agreed to spend that time with someone unless they were interested.
Another way to look at this is as a reminder that email is not nearly as reliable as most of us think that it is. So when you apply to jobs via email, and that includes posting your resume at job boards such as CollegeRecruiter.com because the job boards email your resume to the employer, you should be sure to follow-up four to five business days after submitting your resume. Simply call the human resource office (or named contact person if the posting includes that information) and ask them to confirm that they received your resume. You'll be amazed how often they'll tell you that they did not receive it.
Call the recruiter, apologize and explain your situation. If this recruiter spends any time interviewing college students he or she will understand. If they are not understanding of your situation, you probably don't want to work there anyways. Best of luck to you.
Hi Terra,
The only way this is a make-it-or-break-it is probably if they've already filled the job or already found a candidate they love. I know a lot of people who have followed up a week or so later and it has not been a massive issue. (If it's been sitting there for a month, that's another story, of course.)
Definitely don't make it a habit, but don't feel too crushed by it.