你是否想知道当你申请一份工作时，招聘幕后发生的事情？尽管招聘程序会因行业、公司、甚至部门而异，结果却是一样的：众多应聘者中只有一个会拿到聘书。

Ever wonder what goes on behind the scenes when you apply for a job? While the recruiting process varies by industry, company and even department, the result is the same: One person out of many receives an offer.

　　
对于那些未被聘用的人来说，可能很难搞清楚招聘过程中自己作为应聘者出了什么问题。并非每家公司都会通知应聘者他们被拒了，告诉你被拒原因的更是少之又少。不过，明白招聘过程背后的秘密可能会使求职者在找工作时获得有利地位。

For those who aren't hired, understanding what happened to their candidacy along the way can be a mystery. Not every firm notifies applicants they've been rejected, and few say why. But knowing what goes on in the hiring process may give prospects the inside track for a job.

　　
很多雇主在开始招聘高管以下级别人员时，会利用一个招聘小组或人力资源团队来剔除未能满足工作基本要求的应聘者。西雅图一家小型电子商务公司首席营销长里奇说，他们应该只是排除那些明显不合格的人选。

Many employers start filling vacancies below the executive level by using a team of recruiters or human-resources personnel to weed out applications that fail to meet a job's basic qualifications. 'They should only be removing candidates who are a clear miss,' says Peter Leech, chief marketing officer for , a small Seattle e-commerce company.

　　
筛选的方式、时间长短和进入下一轮选拔的应聘者人数会因公司而异，不过也有一定的模式可寻。有些进行初选的招聘人员会把所有的申请都一一过目，而有些则会在申请中找某些关键词。同样，有些人会在进行评估时看附在简历前的求职信，有些则会忽视求职信。职业专家建议，宁可过于谨慎也不要粗心。每份申请都要提供一份认真撰写的求职信，并键入关键词，也就是通常能够在招聘广告中找到的资格要求。

How this is done, the time it takes, and the number of applicants selected to go on to the next step varies, but there are some patterns. Some screeners eyeball every submission that comes in, while others search for certain keywords among applications. Likewise, there are screeners who consider cover letters in their evaluations and those who ignore them. Career experts suggest erring on the side of caution. Submit a carefully written cover letter and insert keywords -- must-have qualifications usually found in the job posting -- with every application.

　　
新罕布什尔州职业策略师奥唐纳说，如果你担心自己的申请无法送达，等上五天，然后给雇主打电话确认他们是否收到了。

If you're worried that your application never arrived, wait five days and call the employer to ask for confirmation, suggests J.T. O'Donnell, a career strategist in North Hampton, N.H.

　　
位于明尼阿波利斯的General Mills Inc.副总裁、首席招聘长莱勒克说，公司只向在网上填写了某个职位申请表的求职者发电子邮件确认收到申请。她说，此外招聘人员只会看那些根据筛选标准满足工作基本要求的应聘者的申请。

General Mills Inc. sends email confirmations only to job hunters who complete an online application for a specific opening at the Minneapolis-based company, says Stephanie Lilak, vice president, chief staffing officer. What's more, recruiters will only review applications that show a person meets a job's basic qualifications, based on screening questions, she says.

　　
不过很多公司常常会有这样的特例：由员工或其他可靠来源推荐的应聘者。一位受到推荐的人选可能会立刻获得注意，有可能会加快他们进入面试阶段的过程。43岁的法斯克兹说，她上个月获得了应聘一份高级营销职位的电话面试，这要多亏了招聘经理的一个朋友推荐了她。法斯克兹后来受邀接受数位高级经理的面试，不过她后来没有得到这份工作。她说，我不用填写网上申请表，直接就进入了面试阶段。

One common exception many firms make: A job hunter who is referred by an employee or other trusted source. A referred candidate may be given immediate attention, potentially speeding them to the interview stage. Michelle Vasquez, 43, says she landed a phone interview for a senior marketing job last month thanks to a referral from a friend of the hiring manager. Ms. Vasquez was later invited to interview with several senior managers, though she later found out she didn't get the job. 'I didn't have out to fill an online application,' she says. 'I went straight into the interview pool.'