You have spent three weeks writing your application for your next career move at the university you’ve been eyeing up for a few years. You’ve included all your papers and grants. You’ve agonised over every sentence. You’ve checked the selection criteria so many times you could recite them in your sleep. Everything is uploaded. Then, at 11:48pm, you finally hit SUBMIT. But nothing happens. 

Did they get it?

You feverishly keep refreshing your email. Nothing. No ‘thank you for your application.’ No ‘your application has been successfully submitted.’  Unfortunately, this is a surprisingly common scenario. Before you spend a sleepless night convinced your dream academic career has disappeared into a university recruitment black hole, there are a few things to check. 

First, quickly log back into the recruitment account and check you entered your email correctly. If you didn’t, quickly resubmit your application. If necessary, create a new account and submit it again.

But what if your email address is correct? Well, the university’s recruitment system could be down. Alternatively, the most likely explanation, the university simply hasn’t set up an automated confirmation email. In the meantime, if you have spent 10 minutes having unhealthy machinations of feeling sorry for yourself and wondering if this university is really worth it if they can’t even send an automated thank you, the clock has probably has just ticked past midnight. The portal has now closed.

What do you do?

The most obvious place to start is the contact person listed in the job ad. Email them politely and ask them to confirm that your application has been received. They are there to assist candidates throughout the recruitment process, so this is a perfectly reasonable request. If possible, send a screenshot of your submission page, particularly if it shows a time and date stamp. Make it clear which position you applied for and, if appropriate, attach a copy of your application.

Also, just in case their system is down, kindly mention you did not receive confirmation of submission. If you applied late on a Friday night, don't expect an immediate response. Give them until Monday morning to get back to you. If you still haven't heard by Monday afternoon or Tuesday morning, send a polite follow-up. Shortlisting meetings can take place very soon after a position closes, so it is worth making sure your application is safely in the system. Also, if there is a phone number listed, don't be afraid to call them.

There is another option

If you’re lucky, the university posted the job ad on a job board that is operated by actual humans. Specialist higher education job boards such as CAMPUS RADAR JOBS can be particularly useful here. Candidates can pre-register their intentions to apply and then the job board people track your application as it passes through to the university job portal. They will often be available to respond to any questions and can also advocate for you if you need to demonstrate you applied before the deadline.

So, if you find yourself staring at your inbox at midnight wondering whether your dream job application has vanished into cyberspace, don't panic. The university may have received your application perfectly well. They just forgot to tell you.

Quite frankly, universities need to do better

Academic hiring is a crucial foundation of any university and ultimately defines its future in teaching, learning and research. Prospective employees should be treated with the utmost respect throughout the recruitment process. It seems so simple, but that very first point of contact after you hit SUBMIT is incredibly important.

It is the university’s first opportunity to say: “We’ve got your application. Thank you for your interest.”

In your head, this is translated as: “Great, my application has been submitted successfully. It seems like a very welcoming university that cares about their employees’ careers.”