One of the big frustrations for people in search of a job is not getting any feedback on your job applications. You spend quite an amount of time and go to a lot of trouble to come up with a decent letter and then you hear… nothing at all. It’s not really hard to understand the resulting frustration, right?
On the other hand, it’s also understandible that answering candidates that do not correspond to the profile an HR manager has in mind for a particalur job opening, is not a top priority task. Especially if there are hundreds of applicants for one single position. But that does not imply that it is a task that should not be performed at all. And, let’s face it: if you plan from the start to reply to all applicants and spend a few extra minutes on creating a decent template e-mail, it’s not the huge task it might seem to be (even in the cases where there were hundreds).

So: if you’re in a position to do this (or decide someone else should do this): just do it. And it’s in fact sheer politeness to act this way. And it will make you feel better at the end of the day.

By the way – for the girls & guys applying for those jobs: be very selective in the jobs you apply for (and make sure to find out whatever you can find out about the company that you consider to be your potential future employer!). Spending a considerable amount of time on a limited set of job applications will bring you a far bigger chance of success than sending out loads of resumés to apply for just any job out there. HR-karma might just thank you for the fact you are causing much less “no, sorry” mails to be sent – or not.

Credits to D. for suggesting the topic.