Should you submit multiple applications to the same company?

Monster’s career expert Vicki Salemi answers user questions on Quora.com. We’re republishing her answers here on a regular basis. If you have a question, email socialmedia@monster.com.

Q. Should I submit multiple online job applications to the same company to increase my chances of getting an interview?

A. Nope. If you’re hoping to send multiple applications for the same job, typically the applicant tracking system (ATS) won’t even let you do this — you’ll likely get a notice saying you’ve already applied. If you’re applying for the same job listed several times, that really won’t increase your chances of getting an interview, either.

When I worked in corporate recruiting and there were multiple openings for the same role, I just opened one job requisition and interviewed candidates for that role. Then we extended offers to multiple people instead of just one.

Whenever I saw candidates submit multiple applications to the same company and not get any traction, it raised a red flag. I thought, “Hmm, this person is not only unfocused, they’re also unqualified, and the other recruiters for those roles aren’t interested in this candidate.” It kind of sends a negative connotation around your candidacy.

I never ended up hiring anyone who applied to 20 different jobs at the same company, but I did hire many candidates who applied to two or three jobs.