How Should I Apply for 2 Job Openings at the Same Pharmacy?

Q:  Chen, I want to apply for 2 jobs at a hospital–one is an inpatient position & the other is an outpatient position.  What should I do with the application?

A:  My advice to you is to decide on one job to apply for & put your full effort there. I know, you may have extreme resistance to my answer because you (…fill in the blank with your reasoning…).  Let me ask you this–why do you want to apply for 2 positions with the same pharmacy/hospital?  I have seen pharmacists come to me with this dilemma, and usually they tell me they want to apply for both jobs because they want to make sure that if they don’t get one job, they get the other.

Here’s the truth you don’t want to hear:  You dilute the strength of your application by coming across that 1) you don’t really know what you want, 2) even if you truly know what you want, it’s harder to point out everything about you that aligns with the position are applying for, when you have to do it for two separate pharmacist positions.  You don’t want to hear this, because you want to believe the illusion that more is better.  Two applications for two separate positions equals two chances at a job, right?  Wrong.  1+1 doesn’t equal 2 here.

If you don’t wish to listen to my advice & want to apply for 2 jobs anyway, I suggest you apply for one job first, then if you don’t get a response or get rejected for it, apply for the second job.  And in that second job application, re-write your resume and definitely include a cover letter that explains why you also have an interest in this other role, along with why you would be good for that particular role, citing specific highlights that support it.

If you want some help with this, there are 3 options you can choose from:
1) Find out how to do stand out from your competition by doing it yourself, with access to secrets of what works & what doesn’t,
2) Get your resume done professionally by a marketing expert so that it gets noticed in this competitive job market
3) Do it yourself without having the edge over your competition.

The pharmacist job market is saturated with competition for the desired positions right now. I am seeing perfectly qualified pharmacists being headstrong about doing what they’ve always done before with applying for jobs.  They apply on their own without getting advice or access to the inside secrets of what hiring managers are looking for, and then they come to me when the damage is already done.  When they don’t hear back from the employer, or they hear “sorry, we filled the position already”, it’s too late.  They blew it.  Don’t be the one who blows it.  You have one chance to stand out–all you have to do is do it right the first time.