How to keep track of your job applications

A job search is a long stretch of small, repetitive tasks, and most of the stress comes from holding them all in your head. Writing each application down takes a minute, and pays it back every time a recruiter calls about a job you had half forgotten.

Why it is worth the minute

• You can follow up at the right time, with the right name.
• You are ready when they call. You know which role it was, which CV you sent, and what you said about salary.
• You don’t apply twice by accident. If you do, it is rarely a problem, but it is easier to avoid.
• You learn what works. After a month you can see which kinds of roles reply, and spend your time there.

What to record for each application

1. Company and role.
2. The link to the posting.
3. The date you applied.
4. Where you found it: a job board, the company’s own site, a referral.
5. Which CV you sent, if you keep more than one.
6. The salary figure you gave, if the form asked.
7. A contact: the recruiter or hiring manager, if you know who it is.
8. Status and next step: applied, interviewing, offer, rejected or withdrawn, and the date of whatever comes next.

That is enough. A record you keep up beats a perfect one you abandon in week two.

The thing almost everyone forgets: the job description

Postings disappear once a job closes, often just before the interview you need them for. Save a copy of each job description when you apply. In most browsers, Print and then “Save as PDF” is quickest; copying the text into a document works too. When the interview comes, you will know exactly what they asked for.

When to follow up

• After applying: if you have a contact and have heard nothing in about two weeks, one short, polite email is reasonable.
• After an interview: a brief thank-you the same day or the next, then a follow-up once the date they gave you has passed.
• After silence: many employers never reply at all, and that says nothing about you. After four to six weeks with no word, mark it closed in your record and put your energy into the next one.

Which tool to use

The best tool is the one you will actually keep up. A spreadsheet with one row per application and a column for each item above works well. A notes app works. The aim is a single place, so nothing lives only in your memory or scattered across email.

How Draftloop keeps track for you

• It records applications as you send them. When you apply with Draftloop, it notes the company, the role, the link and the date. That is free, always.
• It knows the difference between pressing Submit and being accepted. If a site refuses an application, it is marked as not sent.
• Your list lives in your account. You can see every application, open the posting, and set its status to interviewing, offer, rejected or withdrawn, and Draftloop warns you before you apply to the same posting twice. The list and the warnings are part of Pro, and free for your first 25 applications.
• The free job tracker goes one step earlier. Draftloop’s job tracker finds jobs that match your rules, checks each one is real and open, and keeps your whole search on one private page on your own computer. It runs with Claude Code on a paid Claude plan.