Relevant sections of my really long post about this a while ago:
Like lots of people, I started my job hunt by going on LinkedIn and Indeed and sent in an application and/or resume for every job that seemed to match my skills, my interests, or just the city I wanted to move to…
I didn’t keep track of numbers, but I’d say half to 75% never contacted me back or sent a form letter telling me the weren’t interested (sometimes only received months later). Thanks to the job offers I did get, I can look at these and know that it wasn’t because of a problem with me but to be honest every rejection seems like proof that I don’t belong in this industry and I should stop making a fool of myself and go back to working retail.
Some reasons why this happens
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Sometimes it’s not even a “real” job posting.
Companies are required to post jobs externally for a certain amount of time. Often a hire is going to be made internally or they have already decided who they are going to give it to and the posting is just there for form’s sake. -
Lost in the noise
The ease of clicking “Apply through LinkedIn,” etc. online means that an unmanageable number of applications come through for a lot of postings: qualified, unqualified, overqualified. Even if I was a great fit (maybe I was, maybe I wasn’t) I’m sure that sometimes I was just one of too many. -
I didn’t win the filter bingo
The time of experts is expensive, so it’s pretty common for applications to go through non-expert filters first - automated, human, or both. Sometimes I didn’t have the right combination of keywords in my resume or profile. -
They didn’t like what they saw
I’m sure that sometimes, for reasons I’ll never know, my application just didn’t appeal to someone. I try not to think about this one too much.
Get human contact
If a job posting includes any contact information (even a stock company signature block), use it. Submit your application through the website, sure, but then also send an email or call the recruiter who posted it. Talk about specifics of the job posting (“I was excited to see that this is for the education sector. I would love to be part of improving online learning tools. I actually am part of an amazing open source education platform called Free Code Camp”). Ask for more information. Include your resume but also hit the high points in your email (or conversation).