Most jobseekers think rejection happens after the interview. The truth? For the majority of candidates, rejection happens long before that — sometimes in the first 20 seconds of a recruiter scanning their CV.
Recruiters don’t read CVs word for word. We scan them the way you’d scan a menu when you’re hungry — quickly, looking for something that stands out. If nothing grabs attention, or if something raises a red flag, that CV goes straight into the “no” pile.
After 20 years in recruitment, I can tell you this: most candidates lose jobs not because they’re unqualified, but because their CV failed to make the case.