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Old 08-30-2012, 03:19 AM
 
19 posts, read 59,753 times
Reputation: 10

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I graduated in June, and just started looking for jobs (I was out of country, for the summer). I'm only applying to the entry-ones tailored to college grads with specific research/internship experience I have.

For about half, I received an email within a day or two inviting me for an interview. Of those, they all wanted an interview within the next few days. I turned down two who offered me a position, as I felt the job was not a good fit after the interview. I don't know how the other ones went yet. A few of these places updated me to let me know they're checking references, wrapping things up with other candidates, and will let me know very soon. They also asked if hired, when I could start working. It could be a good sign, but I don't want to assume.

There is ONE company, where my dream job is, giving me a lot of concern. I'm actually working with a headhunter, who I had my first interview with, the day after I submitted my application, resume, etc. She said I had the ideal background this company wants, and would review my qualifications with the company & schedule an interview most likely 4-5 days from then (she even gave me dates to keep clear); she also gave me a timeline I could expect. At the end of the interview, she asked about any other interviews and offers I have. I was truthful, and told her I completed a few interviews, turned down two, and was waiting on a few others. I emphasized this job was my dream job though, and best case scenario of all the other ones I'm looking at. That afternoon, she called to say she had great news, talked with the company, and they want to meet and interview me in TWO weeks (gave me specific date/time).

That is a long time to get to the week of the interview. I'm okay with the wait, but I don't know what to make of the change in timeline since she was originally very confident in saying the interview would be within 4-5 days. I said this was great, but I was also surprised at the long wait. She said she didn't know why, but it was probably because they must be busy. This is the first place that said said I was an ideal candidate but didn't want to meet me right away. I may be reading too much into this, but now I wonder... is it possible they have even candidates they're scheduling before me? And I'm the "back up" they want to interview in two weeks? If this is the case, I'm worried they are stringing me along to wait for two weeks, when they have another candidate in mind. If I wait that long, I could also risk losing another offer that comes up by then.

I've never worked with a headhunter before so I'm not sure what to make of this delayed waiting time before the interview. I've heard of people waiting AFTER the interview to hear back for weeks, but never waiting that long BEFORE an interview. Is this normal? Am I reading way too much into this? If the headhunter is doing this purposely to make me want the job more, she is doing a good job of it. I'm not sure what to think of all this, so please tell me your thoughts!
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Old 08-30-2012, 06:16 AM
 
1,636 posts, read 3,151,883 times
Reputation: 2747
Quote:
Originally Posted by student90 View Post
I graduated in June, and just started looking for jobs (I was out of country, for the summer). I'm only applying to the entry-ones tailored to college grads with specific research/internship experience I have.

For about half, I received an email within a day or two inviting me for an interview. Of those, they all wanted an interview within the next few days. I turned down two who offered me a position, as I felt the job was not a good fit after the interview. I don't know how the other ones went yet. A few of these places updated me to let me know they're checking references, wrapping things up with other candidates, and will let me know very soon. They also asked if hired, when I could start working. It could be a good sign, but I don't want to assume. This is a standard interview question.

There is ONE company, where my dream job is, giving me a lot of concern. I'm actually working with a headhunter, who I had my first interview with, the day after I submitted my application, resume, etc. She said I had the ideal background this company wants, and would review my qualifications with the company & schedule an interview most likely 4-5 days from then (she even gave me dates to keep clear); she also gave me a timeline I could expect. At the end of the interview, she asked about any other interviews and offers I have. I was truthful, and told her I completed a few interviews, turned down two, and was waiting on a few others. I emphasized this job was my dream job though, and best case scenario of all the other ones I'm looking at. That afternoon, she called to say she had great news, talked with the company, and they want to meet and interview me in TWO weeks (gave me specific date/time).This varies by company, how big the HR team is, and how many applicants you have. My current job was a three month interview process.

That is a long time to get to the week of the interview. Again, it depends on the demands and the size of the HR team. Two weeks really is nothing to be concerned about unless you have tons of other offers on the table for you. If that were the case, politely inform HR you have other offers coming in and would like to interview with them and see if they can bump you up. If not, it's really not that bad.I'm okay with the wait, but I don't know what to make of the change in timeline since she was originally very confident in saying the interview would be within 4-5 days. Recruiters aren't technically with the company they are recruiting for (headhunter and recruiter are used interchangeably by some BTW, headhunter is more commonly used for seasoned professionals/CEO searches). Your recruiter is recruiting for the company, however they may not know everything. Maybe something came up with the interviewer. Who knows.I said this was great, but I was also surprised at the long wait. She said she didn't know why, but it was probably because they must be busy. This is the first place that said said I was an ideal candidate but didn't want to meet me right away.It sounds like they gave you an interview, so they are interested in meeting you. Interviews are timely and costly. I may be reading too much into this, but now I wonder... is it possible they have even candidates they're scheduling before me?Yes. And I'm the "back up" they want to interview in two weeks?Anyone could be considered "back up" to anyone. If this is the case, I'm worried they are stringing me along to wait for two weeks, when they have another candidate in mind. If I wait that long, I could also risk losing another offer that comes up by then. Believe me, HR doesn't enjoy stringing people along. They're busy people. If they thought you weren't qualified, they wouldn't interview you. Like I said, if you have other interviews/offers you are holding up, politely tell the interviewer that you want to interview with the company, and could you please get an interview sooner?

I've never worked with a headhunter before It's probably not a "Headhunter". so I'm not sure what to make of this delayed waiting time before the interview. I've heard of people waiting AFTER the interview to hear back for weeks, but never waiting that long BEFORE an interview. Is this normal?"Normal" is hard to say. That's like asking you if your college experience was normal, your life was normal, your job is normal, etc. Am I reading way too much into this? If the headhunter is doing this purposely to make me want the job more, she is doing a good job of it.No, people really tend to not play these games. I'm not sure what to think of all this, so please tell me your thoughts!
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Old 08-30-2012, 11:47 AM
 
491 posts, read 2,283,559 times
Reputation: 541
It's still summer vacation time, school starting too - maybe the interviewer is on holiday, something simple like that.
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Old 08-31-2012, 02:29 PM
 
19 posts, read 59,753 times
Reputation: 10
Thanks for the responses. As for the 'standard' interview question thing, I'm not sure if it's exactly standard. They emailed me a week later to tell me they were wrapping things up, and in the process of checking my references, and will let me know soon (and also confirmed what date I was available to start). A few days later, they asked me to come next week to meet with them.

For the other bolded answers: Those explanations make sense - someone might be away on vacation. They might have a smaller HR team. something could have come up. All those things are reassuring. You're right in that interviews are timely and costly, so they wouldn't just schedule an interview to string me along. I guess I was just weighing things - I didn't want to put one of my eggs in this interview in 2 weeks, if I could put another egg in another more interested basket.
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