Job Interview Tips for Using the Overqualified Label to Your Advantage
The overqualified label can be just as bad as being inexperienced when you're looking for a job. However, when your job search produces fewer offers than you anticipated, sometimes you have to interview for positions that require less experience than you currently have. The interview is your time to sell the employer on why a decision to hire you would be a good one, despite the fact that you are what they've called overqualified.
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Training Costs
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During your interview, use your overqualified status to justify lower training costs for the company. If you have several years of experience in the field, it's likely you will need training on company-specific processes only. An inexperienced worker costs the employer much more in training expenses, just in the sheer time it takes to acquaint the worker with the actual job as well as the company's processes. In addition, new entrants to the work force also may require training on simple work skills, such as how to read company policies, the importance of attendance and the right way to develop productive working relationships with colleagues and supervisors.
Ramp-Up Time
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Being overqualified really does give you an edge. Your ramp-up time is considerably shorter than someone without your qualifications. Consequently, your productivity begins sooner than later, which benefits the company's bottom line. Explaining to the interviewer that being overqualified is a boon to the employer can work to your advantage. In addition, your general exposure to the work force makes you a much more viable candidate in terms of work skills and maturity -- you understand what employers expect of their workers and you know how to organize your time and your duties to fulfill those expectations.
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Interim Appointments
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This may be a tricky proposition, but your knowledge of the field could position you as someone who can respond to questions or issues in the absence of your department manager. Be careful when proposing this idea because it could backfire and be interpreted as your desire to take over as soon as you get the job. Base your decision to discuss how being overqualified gives the department another expert on the recruiter's reception to your ideas on reduced costs for training, and your ability to step in and assume your responsibilities with relative ease.
Salary
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Althoughyou should never diminish the worth of your qualifications in the labor market, you could propose that you're willing to accept a salary consistent with the position's starting grade. Should you feel comfortable enough during your interview and if you really need a job, you can offer to lower your salary demands. This requires you to be candid with the interviewer -- in times when unemployment rates are high, employers are more likely to understand overqualified job seekers who will accept slightly less than their skills are actually worth.
Adaptability
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Recruiters may see overqualified candidates as prospective employees who will attempt to change the company's procedures or employees who will be resistant to change. Your job during the interview is to convince the recruiter that, while you have a wealth of knowledge, you are open to learning new concepts. Express your willingness to acquire new skills, which anyone can do, regardless of the amount of expertise they have.
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References
- Quintessential Careers; Fighting the Overqualified Label -- 10 Tips for a Successful Job Search; Randall S. Hansen
- "The Seattle Times"; "Los Angeles Times" You Can Overcome "Overqualified" Label by Taking a Hard Look; Joyce Lain Kennedy; June 1991
- Monster.com; Interview Questions to Ask When Recruiting Overqualified Candidates; Dona DeZube
