The document outlines 11 reasons why the author will never hire graduates, including having an overly long resume, not preparing for interviews, dressing inappropriately, lacking social media expertise, having grammatical errors, being late or lacking courtesy, and not having internship experience. The author advises graduates to focus on creating a concise resume, thoroughly preparing for interviews, following up professionally, managing their social media presence appropriately, eliminating errors, and gaining internship experience to improve their chances of getting hired.

1. Congratulations
Graduate!
Eleven Reasons Why I Will Never Hire You.
by Mark O’Toole - PR & content at HB Agency

2. o
C
m
m
e
c
n
m
e
e
t
n
o
e
v
.
r

3. The
real
world
awaits.

4. Bushy-tailed
and excited,
you young
graduates
storm the
job boards.

5. Never mind the color of your
parachute, some of you have
no parachutes at all.

6. And that can lead
to a hard landing.

7. Employers
know that
not all grads
are created
equal.

8. Sometimes
we hire
people like
you into
entry-level
positions.

9. More often though, we don’t.

10. Because…

11. You are just
not the right fit.

12. A more impressive candidate
captured our attention.

13. Or you are
simply a
victim of
some other
random
event out
of your
“I didn’t post
that picture.”

14. But too many of you
who had the skills
and capabilities to
make the cut or get
a second interview
blew it.

15. in You
te r
br rv dis
ou ie a
gh wi st
t y ng ro
ou sk us
do il
wn ls
.

16. why?

17. Is it you?

18. Your
family
support
system?

19. ca Y
re ou
er r
se sc
rv ho
ice o
s s l’s
ta
ff
?

20. Whatever the reason,
there are consistent
themes as to why you
didn’t get the job.

21. This won’t be the first time you’ve heard
these and it won’t be the last, but as your
class flourishes shiny new resumes in front
of prospective employers, here are the top
reasons why I will never hire you.

22. 1.
Your resume
is
longer than that of a
25-year professional.

23. I appreciate your desire to
showcase your
classwork,
high school
accomplishments,
extracurricular
endeavors and your
three marketing
projects.

24. But I need
to see
clarity and definition in what you present.

25. Make it relevant, make it concise, make it focused.

26. “An
overly
long
resume
does not
impress
me.”

27. (A ridiculously short resume is equally
dangerous. Did you do anything besides attend class?)

28. You
didn’t
prepare
for our interview.

29. You’re probably a better
internet surfer than I am, so
why didn’t you spend a few
minutes gathering intelligence
about me or my business?

30. X
X
X
site.
eb
k
ou d
Y
’t loo
idn
my w
at
ut on
eo
ck m
che
ed to witter.
l
u fai or T
Yo
edIn
ves:
nk
Li
t pee old
y pe to h
rn m learn
tful
’t lea tact;
didn con
ough s.
You eye
ve th stion
e
n; gi que
mak versatio cult
con s to diffi
a
wer
ans

31. (I’m not always
concerned with
your actual
answer but
rather your
composure
and thinking
process when
answering it).

32. .
3
q
u
n
o
i
t
s
e
s

33. Look up questions to ask online.
“questions grads should ask in an interview”
Find 30 questions
no one has ever asked me.

34. Show me
how you
gather
information.

35. ?
Do you want me to think
I’m going to have to
do the work for you,
or that you’ll show up
prepared every day?

36. You wrote a
thank you note,
and only used it to thank me.

37. I also enjoyed our
time together,
so instead
of just
thanking me,
add value.

38. Use
your
note (email or
note/card are all fine
– nothing is not)
to show your
passion for
this job.

39. Reflect upon
what you
learned
in the interview.

40. Confirm
why
you’re the
candidate
of my
dreams.

41. You
dressed
for
failure.

42. My workplace
is casual,
at least most of the time.
Many offices are
these days.

43. But you should not be for an interview.

44. it .
re
d ss
co es
e) ok and
w out o other
on r a
clothi
’t c night cl ng
ub
ut
nd
s u en
,
ts eek
n
ir w
o
-sh a
s, t to
ce
hino ear
ni
c
a
eans, ay w
J
m
en
y ou
(ev

45. I want to know what you’ll look like when I take you to see a client.

46. Show me that you understand this.

47. what
you want

50. But when you tell me that,
you’re basically saying,
“please invest loads of
time and money into me,
and maybe it will help
me figure out that I want
to do something else.”

51. e
c
n
i
v
n
o
C
yo
t
ve
’
u
ha
t
h
re
e
e
m
w
n
a
ed
t
o
y
r
u
to
w
rk
o
h
w
le
o
li
.
fe

52. Yo
ur
um
d
ul
ho .
es
e it
rc
nfo
res
rei

53. Your follow-up
note should
hammer the
point home.

55. I’m
not
all-t lo
rade okin
post s g
ing . (If for a
wou I w jac
ld h ere, k-o
ave the fs a i d j ob
so.)
a ja
ck
, the
j
d

56. Because I’m not
really into candidates
who won’t throw
themselves 100%
into the opportunity
at hand.

57. 7.
You don’t get
social media
(but think you do).

58. I don’t expect
you to be an
expert in
anything
just getting
out of
school, but
your resume
claims social
media expertise.

59. Your blank
Pinterest
page is
less than
compelling.

60. Spelling Tumblr
with an “e”
says something –
but not the
right thing.

61. Dabble in social while at school for sure.

62. Tell me
you have
exposure
to social
networks.

63. Just don’t try to
impress me with
“expertise”
that does not
exist yet.

64. oo d Did
id n’
fr ’n t
ea t
d.
Yo
pr u

65. d grammar
If you can’t eliminate
bad grammar or
misspellings from your
resume or cover letter,
how can I expect you
to write an error-free
report for a client?
spellings from y
me or cover let
can I expect yo

67. You DON’t
HAVE A LINKEDIN PROFILE

68. LinkedIN IS THE Place to
showcase
your professional
skills, even if they
are nascent

69. t
righ s online
up
.
t
ip
Set i are lots of t it some love
(there ) and give
p
to hel

70. ip
sh
rn
te
in
hree).
an (or two or t
Do

71. While this is more for those
still in school than those
just out, nothing makes you
more attractive to me than
knowing you’ve been exposed
to a similar work environment.

72. Internships also help you decide if my job represents
the right structure for you – saving us both time and agony
if it turns out you just don’t like what we do.

73. I get 50-100 resumes each
semester from new graduates.
Those with internships sit well
ahead of those without.

74. ional cou
rtesy!
You lacked
profess

75. You were two minutes late.

76. You looked away when you shook my hand

77. I introduced
you to my
colleague
and you didn’t
even ask her
what she does.

78. Why would I want
to expose you
to my clients?
WHY?

79. You and your
family have invested
vast amounts of
time and
money into
getting
your diploma.

80. It’s a small bit of extra effort to make sure you don’t ruin your chances in the interview.

81. I will hire someone – I just won’t hire you.

82. Job hunting is like a job unto itself.
You will get it right, but you need to work at it.
1. Make a right-sized resume – it’s a door-opener only,
not your one and only chance to get an interview.
2.
Interview prep makes you look like a rock star during
our conversation.
3.
Ask really good questions in the interview. It matters.
4. Use your promptly sent thank you note to reveal even more
awesome stuff about why you make sense for this job.
5.
Dress up – it will make you feel better during our meeting.
6.
Stay focused.
7.
Social media is mainstream but don’t overplay it until you
know where it fits, or doesn’t fit, in the job.
8.
No typos!
9.
LinkedIn matters – you become searchable, findable
and professional.
10. Internships set you apart (and give you great stuff for bullet #1).
11.
Practice hand-shaking at home!

83. Mark O’Toole is managing director of PR content at HB agency, a B2B marketing and communications firm
with global clients in clean tech, medical tech and high tech. Despite the very true observations in the article
above, Mark has hired countless talented PR pros over the last 15 years. Reach Mark at motoole@hbagency
or on Twitter @markrotoole.
Design and layout courtesy of HB’s Matt Gustavsen Christine Tesseo.
To learn more about HB’s branding, marketing and public relations expertise, please visit www.hbagency.com.