Hack the Path

I have seen many posts people have made on social media stating that you can’t get a job unless you have a referral. I am here to explain why that isn’t true and how referrals can easily be missed opportunities if you manage to get one. However, if you do get a referral, I’ll show you exactly how to maximize the opportunity.

What is a Referral?

Referrals are recommendations from an individual who currently works at the company you’re applying for. Referrals tell recruiters that you should be considered as a strong candidate, based on the experience another employee has with you. They often include space for the employee to provide details for the referral, such as how they know you and any information about the applicant’s prior experience.

What a Referral ISN’T.

A referral is not a golden ticket to a job. Referrals do not tell recruiters that you’re fit for the role or that you meet the qualifications, because they aren’t the ones who are doing the hiring usually. They also don’t guarantee interviews.

Pros and Cons

Referrals can help your application stand out slightly more in the applicant pool, but not as much as people believe. It may be reviewed before other applicants, regardless of the time it was received, and more time may be spent on your application, but it doesn’t guarantee that your application will be weighed any differently from an applicant without a referral. Contrary to popular belief, referrals don’t improve the quality of your application. In fact, if they are misused, they can actually hurt your chances. In most companies, your information gets saved in the recruiting database, so whatever version of your resume you submit will be saved. If you submit a low-quality application, it won’t help you land future positions at this company.

Additionally, the individual you get the referral from can also impact the referral. If you’re applying for a software related role, it would help if the individual who’s referring you has some of the same experience, as they’ll typically have a stronger understanding for the needs of the role. If you’re getting a referral from someone working in something like finance, it still helps as they know what the company looks for, but it’s not expected that they’ll know what kind of experience the role is looking for. In some cases, it may not be relevant, for example some hardware roles have connections within software, so getting a referral from someone in hardware is typically fine.

Before you get started…

Prior to reaching out for a referral, make sure that your LinkedIn account is polished and looks professional. If you’re reaching out via email, make sure that your profile picture, name, and signature (portion on the bottom with your details) is updated and professional. You want to ensure that you’re making a good first impression, especially if you haven’t reached out in some time.

Start by reaching out to your network to see if you know anyone working at a company you’re interested in applying for. Make sure that the person you’re asking for a referral can say a lot about you when providing that information. If you ask someone who you haven’t talk to enough, or cold messaging someone you don’t know, they won’t be able to provide much information about you to recruiters. This also increases your chances of rejection.

Now, having a coffee chat with someone is typically not enough to get a referral. You need to interact with them on multiple occasions and have an actual conversation, instead of just questions and answers. Ask about a common interest and have something to bring back to the conversation the next time you meet. We’ll have another post soon about networking and how to do it right.

There are cases where people give referrals out like nothing, but recruiters can also see which employees are giving the referrals, so if they notice this individual is referring almost anyone, they can choose to ignore the referral and throw your application into the default pool.

If you’re stuck on where to ask, try reaching out to Alumni from your university, community groups (e.g. Reddit, though kind of a gray area, but there’s still helpful people on the platform), or professional organizations either through your university or external (e.g. SHPE, RTC, etc.).

Make sure that you’re requesting for a referral that aligns with the experience that appears on your profile. People often won’t provide referrals if they find that you don’t have the correct experience.

Finally, increase your activity on LinkedIn to show any new work, interesting finds (like articles, papers, etc.) and more. This helps build a stronger bond with your network if you’re actively engaging with them.

Step 1: Getting the Referral

Like I mentioned prior, you need to ensure that you’re getting it for a role that fits your experience. Browse the available positions for the company and select the one you’re interested in and send the link to the position to your contact. You want to make sure you can include as much relevant information in your message and on your resume as possible. If you don’t have that much experience, find other experience, projects, or even classwork that fits the needs of the role. Keep in mind, you must meet the minimum requirements of the job posting. That way you can at least guarantee that you can be considered for the role. It’s possible that you can still get the role without meeting the requirements, but it’s not very likely.

Here’s a template you can use to ask for a referral, under the assumption that this individual has spoken with you on various occasions:

Hello [Name],
I hope you’re doing well. I want to take a moment to thank you for taking the time to connect with me over the past [time], and I have learned a lot from our conversations about [topic].

I have been browsing job postings at [company] and I came across [job title] and would be interested in applying. [Explain why you’re drawn to this position]. I have created a resume for this position, but I’m not quite sure if it aligns with what the application is looking for. Can you offer your thoughts?

I also wanted to be considered for a referral for this position. I completely understand if you’re not comfortable with this. Either way, I value any feedback on my current application.

Thank you,

[Your name]

The template above doesn’t directly ask for a referral, which leaves more room for conversation, rather than a dead end. You are also providing an information on your experience and interests to the role. Of course, there isn’t a universal way to ask for a referral, so only use this as a guide. It varies on your relationship with the contact (such as whether or not you were classmates, worked previously, or just met them through networking), and what you’ve discussed previously.

Step 2: Crafting your Application

We’ll have another post with details on how to craft a perfect application, but you want to focus on what the job posting is asking. If they require you to have a strong C++ background, add prior experience that showcases it, such as projects or assignments. You’d also want to include experience relevant to working with an object-oriented programming language similar, as well as experience with data structures. Take a look at things that would help make your application stand out based on the job description and try to include those too. You can use AI to help make your application better, but do keep in mind that it’s incredibly easy for a recruiter to tell if you used AI, so only use it to reword certain parts and not the entire thing.

Make sure that you’re being specific when describing your experience itself, but balance it between technical language and plain language. Remember, recruiters typically are the ones who see your application first, so they may not have the knowledge to understand certain parts of your application, where a hiring manager might. You want to make sure you clearly list what you accomplished and how you did it. Check the resources channel in our Discord for a few resume tips.

Step 3: Applying

In most cases, if you have a referral or expect to receive one, you will need to wait for the individual referring you to submit the referral, so don’t apply until you’re certain of the referral process. Make sure to fill out all of the information on the application correctly. Once you submit, make sure to reach out to the individual who referred you and confirm you submitted the application. Send a thank you message and be sure to follow up with them throughout the process.

Step 4: Interviews and Beyond

If you manage to get an interview, congratulations! Interviewers may or may not have knowledge of the referral, so treat the interview as you would any interview and go in prepared, confident, and energized. The referral does not change the opinion of interviewers, so you can easily waste the opportunity if you don’t come prepared. Check out our interview toolkit for some tips!

Summary

It is incredibly easy to throw away a referral. Here’s the pointers to keep in mind:

1. Referrals are not golden tickets.
2. Referrals don’t guarantee interviews.
3. Referrals don’t tell recruiters or hiring managers that you are a perfect fit, you still have to prove that part.
4. Referrals should come from someone who knows you.
5. Your application needs to be incredibly strong if you plan on applying with a referral.
6. You need to make sure you come to interviews prepared.
7. Don’t waste the opportunity. Make sure that you put as much effort as possible to your application, even if you don’t end up getting a referral.

If you have any questions, be sure to reach out on Discord!