Now the one four year school, which is local, I was stunned to generate interest with them. I've applied for many jobs with that school in the last 2 years and never received anything back besides a rejection email. But they were interested to have me at their social work school as an awarding director. The virtual interview had 7 or 8 people on it, so it's a good sign that their interest was serious. And the money is outrageously good, about 15% more than I've ever made at one job before. But I had been told they still had additional interviews to conduct over the next week. Plus throw in that they're such a large school, it would stand to reason that the hiring process would move about as fast as a turtle through molasses.
With one remote school, there was some confusion on the time zone and also the interview method. First, EDT is apparently the same thing as central time. So that threw me! Then, I expected a phone call and it turned out to be a zoom call. So since I was on the road doing a delivery route, I suddenly realized I had to download the zoom app and I'd be doing the interview from my car. So there I was, in a dark blue long sleeve running t shirt... certainly not what I would have worn for a job interview had I known I would appear on video. I thought the interview went OK, but the fact that I was 20 minutes late, I know that is not a good omen. And gosh, I hate being late for anything. I haven't heard from them in the two weeks since the interview.
Now let's talk about another remote school. The money didn't sound great, but the school had a good reputation. And the hours were unique, working Tuesday through Saturday as well as later in the day. I had previously completed a virtual interview, where I was given questions to answer on a screen and I then had to record my answers. I had done this one time before, and I did not feel very comfortable, but at least it gave me some experience in that setting.
It took nearly three weeks after that process, but I heard back from the school during that hectic Tuesday. The HR manager asked me to do a screening with herthe next day, which went pretty smoothly. And that wasn't surprising, I've always been fine with the HR folks. So I was asked to interview with another member of the talent team as well as a director on the team where I would be working. And that was going to be on the next Monday morning. I accepted.
The final school, which is a local technical college, reached out to me via text, which is unusual. I interviewed with their recruiter in Louisiana via phone on Friday and then had an in person interview the following Monday afternoon. The same Monday that I interviewed in person with the remote school. I wore my three piece suit, and it wasn't exactly comfortable on such a hot Carolina afternoon. I got along with the campus president very well; I met several other members of the staff; I was given a tour of the "campus," which is part of a strip mall. Now one of my concerns was that several locations of this school had closed, so I needed to know how stable they were. Over the last two decades, I've worked for many schools that are no longer in business. The president addressed my concerns sufficiently. I felt very positive after the hour plus long meeting, confident I had a great chance to finally get my first job offer.
By late Monday, the local school made me a tentative offer. The money was good, the start date was good, and I said I would like to go forward. So at that point, I felt committed to the local school. It felt safe, it seemed pretty easy. Sure I had another interview planned with the remote school on Wednesday, but it just didn't seem likely. It's hard to get a remote job, since the talent pool is so much bigger than if the job is just local.
I reached out to the other three schools and explained I had received a job offer so I needed to know where I stood in the process with the other schools. The recruiter at the remote school asked me to do a follow up interview on Wednesday morning with the same talent member plus a different department director. I agreed, and I felt zero pressure going into this. Maybe that helped? However, by the time I repsponded there wer0 eno more Wednesday openings so I had to push it to Thursday.
The follow up interview was scheduled for 9:45 am and the block was 45 minutes long. Turns out the interview was over in 15. It went smoothly, and around 30 minutes after the interview ended, I received a job offer from them for a little bit better money than what had been initially presented. Not as much as the remote school, but close. But they were asking for an answer that day... and that didn't exactly give me an abundance of time! Ironically, the local school finally got my offer letter to me that same afternoon, about 48 hours after the last interview.
So all of a sudden, I had a major decision to make. It was not an easy choice. I consulted with a few trusted people. Here's what it came down to. I realized that while the in person job was safer in that I knew the processing systems, I was used to the quick academic schedule where there was a new start every five weeks, and that the base pay was better... it wasn't what I really wanted. The remote job would be easier on me time wise, the school has over 200,000 students, the benefits are much better, there are opportunities for annual bonuses, and after nine months, I can apply for the next level up in my position. I'd be betting on myself, but I believe it would be a worthwhile bet.
So that Thursday night, I called the recruiter from that remote school and told her I accepted the offer. I have hesitated to contact the local school because I wanted to make sure everything was settled first. And so in the last few days, I've done my onboarding steps such as address verification, direct deposit, tax documents, etc.
As of now, it's now Wednesday morning. My four references are all checked and I'm just waiting on the background check to finish. I completed the authorization for that on Monday. I shouldn't be nervous, but what if they find I worked a job this year that I didn't include on my resume? It was so negative that I'd rather not talk about it or even acknowledge it. Or the social media post that led to a previous employer blindsiding me last November?
It's as if I've run 26 miles of the marathon... now it's that last 0.2 to go. From what I've researched, these background checks take 1-5 days and this is Day 2.
But the finish line... it's right there. God, please let me cross it.
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