Application Decision

Hi,

I recently applied to be an editor of http://www.dmoz.org/Business/Employment/Job_Search/Interview_Advice/
Username: windjc

I was not approved, which is fine, because I know that quite often people are not approved the first time they apply for various reasons.

However, the email I received not approving me listed all the following general reasons (below) but no specific feedback.

I have been in the career advice field for over 15 years. Its a topic dear to my heart.

I would like to apply again but I have no idea where to start. Advice would be very appreciated!

Here are the general reasons I received in the email, all of which I was fully aware of before the application and none of which I knowledgeably violated.

* Incomplete application. Insufficient information has been provided in some
fields including reason, affiliation and/or Sample URLs.
* Improper spelling and grammar.
* Sample URLs are inappropriate for the category which one has applied to
edit. They may be too broad, too narrow, completely out of scope, poor
quality, or in a language inappropriate for the category. All non-English
sites are listed in the World category. Applications for World categories
that include sites only in English will be denied. Likewise, applications
for World categories that include sample URLs in languages other than the one
appropriate for the applied category will be denied.
* Not properly disclosing affiliations with websites that are, or have the
potential of being, listed in the category.
* Titles and descriptions of sample URLs (and other information provided)
were subjective and promotional rather than unbiased and objective. ODP
editors do not rank or write website reviews. ODP editors provide objective
and unbiased descriptions of websites and their content.
* Self-Promotion. Application which leads us to believe that the candidate is
interested primarily in promoting his/her own sites or those with which the
applicant is affiliated. The ODP is not a marketing tool, and should not be
used to circumvent the site submission process. If this is an applicant's
motivation for joining, then we ask him/her not to apply. Editors found to be
inappropriately promoting their own site will be promptly removed.

Thanks

Jon

Diagnostic skills are a great asset for editors. You presumably know what you wrote and so you should be able to evaluate your application according to each of those comments. There's good advice in the sticky at the top of this forum.

jimnoble said:

Diagnostic skills are a great asset for editors. You presumably know what you wrote and so you should be able to evaluate your application according to each of those comments. There's good advice in the sticky at the top of this forum.

Click to expand...

Hi Jim,

Thanks for the response.

I read the sticky before posting. It's good information. However, unless my category is too broad - although it had no sub-categories - I do not know what the problem could be.

I would hope I have pretty good diagnostic skills as I give diagnostic advice for a living.

I assume your advice is for me to once again apply keeping in mind all the factors in the email. I will do this, although I wish I had a little more to go on, as I checked listed all those factors before submitting my first application.

Cheers

Jon