Applying, step by step · 6 min read
Should I apply for a job if I don't meet all the requirements?
Often yes. Sort the post into must-haves and nice-to-haves. If you show most must-haves, apply and say how you'd close the gap.
The short answer
Often, yes. Job posts mix true requirements with a wish list, and hiring managers regularly interview people who match most but not all of it. Sort the post into must-haves (legal, licence or core daily skills) and nice-to-haves. If you can show most of the must-haves with evidence, apply, and say in your cover letter how you'd close the gap. If you're missing a legal requirement or the core skill the job is built on, spend your time on a closer post.
On this page 4 sections
Sort the post first
| Usually a must-have | Usually softer |
|---|---|
| Right to work, licences, registrations | Exact years of experience |
| The skill the job uses every day | A specific tool when you know a similar one |
| Anything marked 'essential' or 'required' | Anything marked 'desirable' or 'a plus' |
| Anything repeated across the post | A degree subject, for many non-specialist roles |
What the research says
Tara Mohr surveyed over 1,000 mostly US professionals for Harvard Business Review about why they hadn't applied for jobs they didn't fully match. Her finding was that what held most people back was a mistaken view of the hiring process, not a mistaken view of themselves. Many treated the listed qualifications as strict rules the employer may never have meant as rules.
When to skip it
- You're missing a legal requirement you can't get before the start date.
- You're missing the core skill, the one the job does all day, with no evidence of it anywhere.
- You'd need to stretch the truth on your CV to get through.
OffLadder CV, our free Chrome extension, shows which of a post's must-haves your CV doesn't show yet. Hand one to Laddie and you get a short lesson, a 15-minute task from the job itself, and a five-question mock interview for that role.
Questions people ask
- Is it true women only apply when they meet 100% of requirements?
- The line is credited to an internal Hewlett-Packard report that is widely quoted but has never been published. Tara Mohr's 2014 survey of over 1,000 people, reported in Harvard Business Review, found people held back mainly because of a mistaken view of how hiring works, rather than doubt about their own ability.
- What percentage of requirements should I meet?
- There's no reliable number. Count must-haves rather than all bullets: if you show most of the ones the job is built around, it's worth applying.
- Should I mention what I'm missing?
- Not on the CV. In the cover letter, one or two sentences on how you'd close a small gap, ideally with something you've already started, can help.
- What counts as a hard requirement?
- Anything legal or safety-related (right to work, a licence, a registration, a security clearance) and the skill the job does all day. Years of experience is usually softer than it looks.
- Does applying for jobs I'm not qualified for hurt me?
- Not usually, unless you apply for many unrelated roles at the same employer. Applying to stretch roles that are close to your experience is normal.
Exercises are practice, not evidence of career fit or a qualification. How to read our guides and report a correction.
Sources
- Why women don't apply for jobs unless they're 100% qualified · Tara Sophia Mohr, Harvard Business Review (2014)
How this page is written
Sources support the factual background, not a guarantee that an exercise predicts career fit. Fictional practice material is labelled. Dates record content updates; no independent expert review is implied. More about OffLadder.