Job application forms take too long to complete

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: don’t force jobseekers to fill in long application forms.

An extremely bright and talented Phd told me the other day that he’d not applied to graduate training schemes just because the application processes were so long (he’s just got a great job via networking with people in his chosen industry).

Remember, many jobseekers won’t bother completing your marathon application forms. Those that do will just end up being frustrated and annoyed with you.

For example, take a look at the results of a poll we’re running on our Career Development pages:

“How long do you spend filling out a job application form?”

• 5-10 minutes
  5.6%
• 10-30 minutes
  4.3%
• Up to one hour
  15.5%
• Half a day
  36.5%
• All day
  16.3%
• Longer
  21.9%

Take a look at that last figure!

Almost 22% of respondents take longer than a day to complete an application form! A whole day?

Something is wrong here isn’t it – don’t you think?