Are you REALLY overqualified?

Recently, I heard an NPR program, “Talk of the Nation,” discussing the difficulty of finding work in our current economy. The guest was a young man who had completed an MA in English and admitted to difficulty in finding full-time work.  He was doing part-time teaching jobs, but he needed steady income.  He applied to numerous positions and came up empty.  He said that as he continued to get rejected he began to apply for jobs for which he considered himself “overqualified.” He singled out administrative assistant positions and secretarial work as jobs for which he was being passed over.

So what did our “overqualified” candidate do? He posted a similar, yet fake, job on Craigslist to see what kind of resumes he would receive. His question: "Who is my competition?" He received hundreds of resumes, many of which recounted actual administrative work!

Leaving aside the questionable ethics of using a fake posting to glance at his competition, the premise of the story and this young man’s stunt are that somehow he was not only qualified, but overqualified for a job as an administrative assistant simply because of a degree. Unfortunately, at no point did he provide the audience with his qualifications or experience that would be needed for this type of position. In fact, he didn’t seem to appreciate the real skill required for this type of job. He didn’t show that he had exceptional frontline customer service skills, experience with ordering or managing vendors, ability to support other individuals, organizational skills, understanding of key computer software, or experience managing schedules for one or multiple people.

This matters, because it’s a classic mistake made by many a new job hunter. Failure to understand that just because a job does not pay a high salary does not make you overqualified for it. Saying that a Master’s degree in English makes you qualified to be an administrative secretary is like saying a scuba diving certification makes you a great groundskeeper. (Well, they both have to do with nature, right?)

The reality is that while they are both great credentials, they have very little to do with those jobs. Unless you can specifically draw a line to how your credential improves your ability to do the job (if it required a lot of writing, for example), then it’s best not to assume it makes you a better candidate.

So was he overqualified?  If he truly had the skills necessary PLUS an advanded degree and years of experience above and beyond the job, then yes, he was overqualified. And it is tougher to get hired because employers know you aren't likely to stay in the job very long. In those situations, you should focus on the job description and draw a direct line to the experiences and skills you have that make you the best fit for the job.  That may mean not mentioning any unnecessary credentials on your resume until you're asked about them in an interview or on an application.