interviewing costsI have recently expanded my job search to include jobs all over the U.S. as I have a degree in Spanish/International Studies and live in Michigan where we are #1 in unemployment for the nation - not to mention lack of a need for interpreters/translators. Anyways...my question is - is it ok to ask for a company located across the country to reimburse you if they want you to come in for an interview??? This has happened a couple times now where a company will do a phone interview with me, then contact me telling me they'd love to have me in for a "face to face interview" and ask if by chance will i be in their state anytime soon. First of all, i live in UPPER Michigan and the last company that did this was hiring for Denver. Just to drive to CO would cost me hundereds of dollars in gas, not to mention possibly getting a hotel. Secondly, i don't know a lot about the position to begin with to justify driving cross country to further investigate. I feel that we could just as easily conduct another phone interview or two before we meet face to face and not mutually waste our time. What i did was I emailed this company back and said basically the same thing I just said, but much different wording obviously. So...is it OK to ask them to compensate me for the travel or at least to do more phone interviews before coming?? As of right now I have no idea what the compensation for this position is and would definitely not consider spending hundreds of dollars to interview for a job that does't pay me what I need. I'm scared that i will either spend a ton of money to find out A. i don't even want the job or B. that they don't hire me. Advice please?? If it's ok to ask for reimbursement how do I go about that professionally?? Few companies will offer to pay for travel expenses and/or relocation expenses these days. That only happens if you have unique skills that are hard to find. Generally speaking, if they're willing to do it, they'll tell you. If they're asking if you're going to be in town anytime time soon, they're not planning on paying. So, the question goes back to you, what is it worth to invest in your future? If you choose wisely and do a few (discount) trips, it may be a very good move. You'll have to make that decision yourself however.
Good luck! Tess This might be a really crazy idea, but why not investigate where the careers are in your field, where the jobs are, and relocate? You may have to do some research, save up for the move, and even take jobs just to pay the bills while looking for the job you really want. But when you already live in the area where your target career is located, the employer is also taking less of a risk on you, because you have already made a commitment to the area. When I was employed in human resources, we didn't like to relocate people unless we were really desperate, because not only was it more expensive, but often those arrangements didn't work out because new recruits would discover that they don't like area. If someone already lives in the area they are invested, and less likely to give up and move back to their original location. Hey smorrishr, Thanks for your advice...i've definitely thought about moving but like you said, first i need to make some money. So, i'm working on that at the moment and hopefully i'll be able to relocate like you said.
No companies are not in the habit of paying forcandidate travel expenses. Companies are reluctant to recruitcandidates who will need to relocate to a differentstate and will only do it if there is a severe skill shortage.
Lookat relocating to an area where you know there will be loads of jobs inyour field. If you speak Spanish look at job possibilities in andaround Miami as Spanish is the second language. The weather isfantastic although the housing market is on the floor - the employmentmarket is still reasonably bouyant. Good luck. Personal site was removed broke Terms of Use http://about.monster.com/terms/ Quick question because I am not totally clear on this point. Are these people who you have sent your resume to or are they companies who found your resume on the internet and contacted you? I ask this because if you are the one who initiated the process by sending in your information to them as a response to an advertisement, then you needed to have some idea of the position and it's responsibilities, but it is never an error to ask over the phone to explain the position in more detail or to ask for clarification concerning one of the listed responsibilities. Also, if you initiated the contact, the company's representative may feel that you are already interested enough in the company and the position to send the information and so it follows that you are interested enough to pay your own way. Now, if the company initiated contact with you because they "came across your resume", and they are impressed with you after the phone interview to contact you for a face to face, then they should be the ones who pay for your travel since they are the ones who are doing the pursuing. Again, you should ask for clarification over the phone of the job's duties so that you can make an informed decision. The two companies who you mention were, in my opinion, not seriously considering you or did not actually have a position since they stated "if you are going to be around anytime soon". If you are being pursued by a company who initiated the contact and they have not mentioned anything about reimbursement, ask them about it. There is no harm in this. Simply say: "I would like to meet with you very much and can make the arrangements to fly to your offices in (state). What is your company's policy in regards to the percentage of travel reimbursement I can submit?" If they say they don't reimburse for travel, then think long and hard about spending money to go to them when you know there is a possibility of not being hired. Ask for a website for the company so that you can research them before going to see them. you want to be armed with as much information as you can.
Hey Kelly, I submitted my resume to them for a position. I haven't heard back from the one company after i emailed the person that interviewed me asking about the travel compensation - i hope I didn't blow it. The position that they had available was one of many as they are filling about 75 position in a new office they just opened. The thing is, i MIGHT be willing to travel to CO for an interview, but when the woman interviewed me she literally told me NOTHING about the position - just asked questions about me and we talked for about 20 minutes and then i asked some questions about the company but nothing about the actual position. Should i email her again and ask if she would give me more details as to the position? Go ahead and do just that. Send her an email that states something like: "Dear Ms. Whosits: I would like to meet with you regarding the position of (whatever) in Colorado on (whatever date) and am in the process of making these arrangements. In preparation for the interview, could you please tell me about the duties and other responsibilities that I will be facing as a member of your company while in that position. Could you also tell me a little more about your travel reimbursement policy so that I will know what paperwork is definately needed for submission at the time of my meeting with you." Sincerely, Keep the e-mail non-committal as far as when you are actually going to be there since your are not technically making those plans. Don't say anything to her about you still being up in the air about even wanting to inteview because you really don't want to scare her off of you as a possible viable candidate. | |
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