Interviewing During Hunting Season

[2rocky]

So I'm still gainfully employed but I've started applying. Two potential employers have given me call backs.

One company I've had 3 Zoom meetings with a Fourth later today , and the other I'll be having my 3rd with next week.

What is the best way to phrase that I have hunts scheduled during what may be the final interview process? and potentially during the first 4 months of the job?

 

[seeth07]

So I'm still gainfully employed but I've started applying. Two potential employers have given me call backs.

One company I've had 3 Zoom meetings with a Fourth later today , and the other I'll be having my 3rd with next week.

What is the best way to phrase that I have hunts scheduled during what may be the final interview process? and potentially during the first 4 months of the job?

I wouldn't bring it up during the interview process as its not that important to their decision to whether or not they want to hire you. By bringing it up, you are almost certainly hurting yourself. I feel the appropriate time would be once you receive the offer. At that point you should mention any future scheduled, can't move, vacation dates and make them aware that upon accepting the offer they are understanding that you need those dates off.

 

[Nameless Range]

I wouldn't bring it up during the interview process as its not that important to their decision to whether or not they want to hire you. By bringing it up, you are almost certainly hurting yourself. I feel the appropriate time would be once you receive the offer. At that point you should mention any future scheduled, can't move, vacation dates and make them aware that upon accepting the offer they are understanding that you need those dates off.

This.

It's a reasonable expectation of any reasonable employer that potential new employees will have made future life plans prior to being offered a position. Good luck!

 

[TOGIE]

yeah, they're not hunts scheduled during the final interview process. rather, they're planned, scheduled, and paid for vacations. you'll be gone then, work up dates you're not gone with them.

as far as the vacations after you've started, that's normal and as long as you start with enough PTO and you can be a good new hire around that time off they shouldn't care

 

[seeth07]

For example, just last week we interviewed someone for a full time engineering position at our company. We knew going into the interview that the person still had a fall semester left of school. However, they told us ahead of time that they were going to schedule their classes as much as they could to be able to work a decent amount, likely 25-30 hours a week. At the interview the person told us that they scheduled their classes and can only work a half day on Tues/Thur and Fridays. So like 16 hours. Then they told us that they have a vacation planned for a week in October, will be going home for Thanksgiving break and can't work that week at all and then when the semester ends, they will be going home in December and spending a month with family before coming back and able to work full time.

I can't tell you how turned off we were by this persons lack of ambition to get started with us. We told her we would schedule another interview in January if she was still serious about working for us.

 

[44hunter45]

So I'm still gainfully employed but I've started applying. Two potential employers have given me call backs.

One company I've had 3 Zoom meetings with a Fourth later today , and the other I'll be having my 3rd with next week.

What is the best way to phrase that I have hunts scheduled during what may be the final interview process? and potentially during the first 4 months of the job?

I've had to come out of the woods for a job interview. Sucks. Didn't want the job but my current boss thought I needed to do the interview to show I was on the market.

I think it shows them something good if you are willing a get someplace where you can call in during your PTO.

Depending on how strong a candidate you are, you can negotiate a lot. My son wrangled two additional weeks of PTO per year out of his current gig.
I wouldn't volunteer that I'm a bambi killer, but you could say you have commitments.

 

[MThuntr]

If it's something you want then make the time during your hunt to call in even if it means cutting the hunt off completely if you're out in the sticks and need to drive to quality cell service/wifi.

If you accept a job, I'd probably make it such that I started after the season or cut my season short if the job is something I definitely wanted (big pay bump or extra vacation for next year could offset any short seasons now). As a prospective employer, I wouldn't want someone swinging in for a couple weeks then disappearing just as they're getting started.

 

[Jamen]

As said above. I would not mention it until the job is offered. Simply state once offered, that you have prior plans on such and such dates and if that will be a problem if hired. If it is a problem, see if you can compromise some middle ground. If they want you bad enough, they will make accommodations, if you want it bad enough you may have to make those accommodations. Also depends how much time we are talking about here. If its a couple days here and there probably reasonable. if its a few weeks then i can see where that is a turn off for employers.

My personal opinion if it was a job i truly wanted my trips would come 2nd.

 

[SAJ-99]

I can't tell you how turned off we were by this persons lack of ambition to get started with us.

These threads are so much fun to read, but I have so many questions.

The person scheduled their classes, which they have zero control over the date and time of, and it came to 16hrs, after you were given a ballpark of 20-30. That seems to fall in the stuff-happens category. Then they said they had preplanned some vaca around the school breaks and the interview team felt slighted? Look, I get it. Everyone wants to be wanted. You want her to be excited to work there, she wants to be valued and appreciated. There is no secret to making these decisions. After making a lot of them, I feel like they are a coin flip at best, but also maybe you should trust your instincts? Keep in mind that this is the person's first job out of college. They don't even know what they don't know, regardless of the specialty.

Didn't want the job but my current boss thought I needed to do the interview to show I was on the market.

Wait, WHAT? your boss told you to interview somewhere else? Can't the boss just tell his boss that 44hunter45 is thinking about looking elsewhere and that be enough to motivate management? If I had a boss that told me to jump through hoops in order to get my fair value, I would probably start looking for real.

 

[TOGIE]

woof, i wouldn't wanna work anywhere bad enough to load up on a "real job" during my last semester of college.

interning at an oil and gas company in denver after my junior year was my first taste of a real job and boy did it taste gross. realized right then and there i was zero hurry to start one of those "real jobs"

rest of your life to waste away doing bullshit in an office chair that literally nobody anywhere cares about. enjoy a final semester of school.

 

[Deleted member 18333]

For example, just last week we interviewed someone for a full time engineering position at our company. We knew going into the interview that the person still had a fall semester left of school. However, they told us ahead of time that they were going to schedule their classes as much as they could to be able to work a decent amount, likely 25-30 hours a week. At the interview the person told us that they scheduled their classes and can only work a half day on Tues/Thur and Fridays. So like 16 hours. Then they told us that they have a vacation planned for a week in October, will be going home for Thanksgiving break and can't work that week at all and then when the semester ends, they will be going home in December and spending a month with family before coming back and able to work full time.

I can't tell you how turned off we were by this persons lack of ambition to get started with us. We told her we would schedule another interview in January if she was still serious about working for us.

I'm right there with you on this one. Particularly from a person looking for their first job out of school. I could see trying to accommodate any one of these time-off situations but all of them tells me what I need to know about the persons desire. Steel Toe his butt to the curb. Five years from now my oldest boy will be headed your direction with diploma in hand. If he pulls this crap, I'll cut him out of the Will.

 

[SAJ-99]

with diploma in hand

It should be pointed out that this person has yet to graduate and was still getting the offer were it not for "lack of ambition". We are in a job market where the demand for labor is higher than supply. Huge problem, but I don't want to derail the thread.

 

[Deleted member 18333]

It should be pointed out that this person has yet to graduate and was still getting the offer were it not for "lack of ambition". We are in a job market where the demand for labor is higher than supply. Huge problem, but I don't want to derail the thread.

Low ambition labor is a bigger problem than no labor. IME

 

[seeth07]

The person scheduled their classes, which they have zero control over the date and time of, and it came to 16hrs, after you were given a ballpark of 20-30. That seems to fall in the stuff-happens category. Then they said they had preplanned some vaca around the school breaks and the interview team felt slighted? Look, I get it. Everyone wants to be wanted. You want her to be excited to work there, she wants to be valued and appreciated. There is no secret to making these decisions. After making a lot of them, I feel like they are a coin flip at best, but also maybe you should trust your instincts? Keep in mind that this is the person's first job out of college. They don't even know what they don't know, regardless of the specialty.

16 hours compared to 25-30. Or 64% of what was estimated. If we were told 16 hours, we wouldn't have given her the interview chance. This person was behind in school and the extra semester is to finish up 3 classes, so not exactly a packed last semester. Been awhile since I went to this school they are coming from but a class was roughly 3-4 hours of weekly in class time. I personally had about that same amount of time out of class each week. So 24 hours of schooling/week for her left.

As far as to the topic of the OP, this person is asking for being allowed off for 6 weeks from last week of August thru the first week of January. There are 19 weeks there if you add that up. So 6/19 weeks asked to not work. Just over 30% of the time.

So yes, that was a huge turn off for us. If it wasn't for that, she would be in the running as there are other candidates that are qualified.

 

[TOGIE]

to further derail, i find it hard to think that one could truly assess someone's ambition when they're trying to juggle hours of interning a real job around class that would turn to a real full time job after graduation during their senior semesters. it's a big commitment.

wanting to do it in any form shows more far ambition than average to me, especially cause they shouldn't have much problem finding decent job without doing that after they graduate.

look at how many shits have been hired since this zoom era started. people think they can assess people but holy cow a lot of bad eggs have slipped through the cracks in the last few years that i've personally seen.

 

[Deleted member 18333]

look at how many shits have been hired since this zoom era started. people think they can assess people but holy cow a lot of bad eggs have slipped through the cracks in the last few years that i've personally seen.

Agree with this part but I believe it is largely due to employers believing they have to lower their standards due to high demand/low supply. Keep standards high and fight through the low labor problems that it brings. You will be a stronger company in the long run.

You are correct, it is tough to make hard and fast assessments of a person character from an interview. You get bits and pieces at best. My gut would tell me to steer clear of this person.

 

[SAJ-99]

16 hours compared to 25-30. Or 64% of what was estimated. If we were told 16 hours, we wouldn't have given her the interview chance. This person was behind in school and the extra semester is to finish up 3 classes, so not exactly a packed last semester. Been awhile since I went to this school they are coming from but a class was roughly 3-4 hours of weekly in class time. I personally had about that same amount of time out of class each week. So 24 hours of schooling/week for her left.

Those details might change my mind too and was why I said maybe just trust your gut. I'm not sure the original estimate had much value given they didn't know what the class schedule looked like. Maybe the classes weren't spaced apart enough to give adequate time to get back and forth to office, maybe they need more study time than you did, everyone is different. But to be fair, employers shouldn't anchor on it either. Sounds like your firm should just not interview people until their last semester is started.

I'm with TOGIE, could show some ambition beyond what others are doing. But if you have other candidates, just hire one of them. Kids usually don't get more ambition after the first job beats them down.

 

[TOGIE]

You are correct, it is tough to make hard and fast assessments of a person character from an interview. You get bits and pieces at best. My gut would tell me to steer clear of this person.

and gut is indeed what you have to go off of.. if not the only thing you can go off of.

it makes more sense when seeth explains 16 hours isn't what they were looking for, period. though i would have a hard time assuming this girl has no ambition, i'd probably bucket her as having different priorities and especially in the context of while practically still being a kid.

it's good to be ambitious, it's good to care greatly about work and work hard. but there's a lot more to life and you only get to be young for so long, so... don't take it all too seriously, is how i tend to look at things.

 

[seeth07]

Those details might change my mind too and was why I said maybe just trust your gut. I'm not sure the original estimate had much value given they didn't know what the class schedule looked like. Maybe the classes weren't spaced apart enough to give adequate time to get back and forth to office, maybe they need more study time than you did, everyone is different. But to be fair, employers shouldn't anchor on it either. Sounds like your firm should just not interview people until their last semester is started.

I'm with TOGIE, could show some ambition beyond what others are doing. But if you have other candidates, just hire one of them. Kids usually don't get more ambition after the first job beats them down.

The number one quality missing in young candidates these days it seems is ambition. So many 40 hours in and checked out type of people.

 

[Deleted member 18333]

and gut is indeed what you have to go off of.. if not the only thing you can go off of.

it makes more since when seeth explains 16 hours isn't what they were looking for, period. though i would have a hard time assuming this girl has no ambition, i'd probably bucket her as having different priorities and especially in the context of while practically still being a kid.

it's good to be ambitious, it's good to care greatly about work and work hard. but there's a lot more to life and you only get to be young for so long, so... don't take it all too seriously, is how i tend to look at things.

I go into every interview assuming I will be underwhelmed by the candidate. I hire the ones that surprise me. Admittedly, I'm not that much fun to be around.