Does your face fit?
I'd like to suggest that, when it comes to pilot recruitment, it can sometimes be a case of whether or not they think you will fit in the clique. I think at some smaller airlines it can be a more close knit operation, everyone knows everyone, and they are looking for a certain 'type' of person to maintain the cohesion. Obviously, this flies in the face of grandiose fair employment policies etc, but we all know you can get around these in practice.
I don't think this sort of thing happens at larger companies like Ryanair.
Just wondering if anyone else has observed this whilst working for, or applying to airlines?