Blind recruitment: considerations for job seekers

Blind recruitment not only aids organisations but enables job applicants to have access to more diverse opportunities. It encourages concealing certain information for applicants during the recruitment process (this could be name, age, gender, race, photo, educational background, address or other). Organisations aim to avoid unconscious bias during the recruitment process. This enables more diversity in organisations and recruitment is done on skills and experience alone.

As an applicant, you should familiarise yourself with the guidelines set by the organisation. Checking if blind recruitment is in place and what the requirements are. It is a good idea to follow all steps around blind recruitment pre-defined by the organisation.

Things to consider when starting an application:

1. Checking and making a note if the job advertisement mentions a blind recruitment process.
2. If no information is provided in the job advertisement it should be noted if a blind recruitment is used later in the recruitment process. It is likely this is indicated at some point in the recruitment process.
3. CV/Cover Letter/other application documents: Checking what the requirements are for additional documents used during the recruitment process.
4. Checking what information is requested at various stages in the recruitment process and follow blind recruitment instructions and guidelines set by the organisation.

As a candidate, the most important part of the blind recruitment process is your cover letter. This is how you will stand out amongst the crowd. Read our top tips to learn more about how to write the most engaging cover letter.