Job Hunt: Infinity

When I was in graduate school we talked a lot about silos and divisions. It never really hit home until I started working in academic administration (as opposed to student services and that end). The department in which I'm working used to be two departments, and a few years ago they merged. This has affected my life in a few ways, first (and most definitely foremost) of which is how my office and files are organized. Faculty's folders, which hold information such as evaluations, are not organized alphabetically, they are first sorted by previous program and then alphabetically. Contact lists are also sorted like this, which can make finding someone I haven't met yet extremely difficult. We also have two department leaders, one from each former department, who each had their own assistants. This lead to have three assistants in one office, each doing a specific job and working in a specific silo. Silos have also caused other problems, such as redundancy. Each of the t...

Lots of goods and bads the past couple of weeks, along with beginnings and endings, which could be good or (and) bad. I received a rejection letter from my dream job. No interview, nothin'. Well, I can now share that I found a job! I am now a Sr. Staff Assistant at a local institution, working in a 100+ year old program with a fantastic reputation! I started at a really slow time in the academic year, so there isn't a whole lot I can do (yet) I meet my co-worker, who has been out on medical leave, for the first time this week I no longer work in the restaurant business! (but I had to say goodbye to some good people) In my first week of work I managed to get a cold, have Outlook screw up times for an appointment, have my ID number messed up, and get a flat tire I had a terrible stomach bug this weekend, and when I finally felt better we went to the grocery store and then got pooped on by a murder of crows I think I'll continue the blog, but change the idea. I'm...

Sorry for another late blog post, but the past couple of weeks have been a bit crazy. A few weekends ago I was at work when a table had a conversation with me, and I want to share it. At first, I just laughed at the ignorance of what was being said, but after I shared it with my coworkers, I realized how insulted some of them felt for me. I'm not offended by ignorance, or by advice from ignorant people, I can't be or I wouldn't have a job. So, first, some background. In the restaurant where I work, there are close to 90 TVs and the radio is always on. Most of the time there are several different sports channels on the TVs and some sort of music is over the speakers. On Sundays, each TV has a football game on and the Bills game (or most popular team) is being played over the radio. After serving the food, and while clearing plates and garbage from surrounding tables, my table starts talking to me. There are two women in their 60s as well as an older gentlemen. Table: Does...

Recently my graduate school sent out a survey about graduate's job placement. I was pretty honest. At the time I had applied to about 40 positions since January 1st, and had only gotten two or three interviews. I also knew of several people who graduated (with similar and different programs/degrees) who could not find permanent, full-time positions in their fields. I also knew of others, who went through similar programs and found jobs immediately after graduation. And so, as graduate school teaches us, I began to reflect. What in the world could possibly be different from my degree (from an institution not well known in the field) to a degree from a public institution (with a very strong program). We go through similar classes, with theory, diversity, and administration courses. We write similar papers, and have fantastic faculty members. But speaking with the person I know from the very strong program (we'll call it Bills University). Bills University offers a program with a...

I normally try to keep these posts pretty professional. I'm not sure why. Somehow, deep down, I must think that out there somewhere someone who is reading this REALLY wants to offer me a job. And so, on and on I write about searching for that position. But, it's really scary. I'm a waitress (ok, a server). I pay, at the minimum, close to $1000 a month in student loans. I'm married, I have a mortgage, car payment, utilities, and a family to pay for. Some months I don't make enough to make ends meet. And my husband is wonderful (I don't think he really gets it though). We make it through, each month and each disaster. Even the dinner that got messed up earlier this week, we just bought calzones. Generally the people around me don't get it. Don't get why  I want to do what I want to do. "Why not go into HR? you have the skills." I don't want to get into HR, I want to work with students. I didn't study HR in grad school because students ar...

Interviews are always full of questions. Questions toward the candidate, questions toward the panel or interviewer. Questions about behavior, strengths and weaknesses, preferences, money, and the list goes on. Most of the interviews I have been on include a list of questions that are asked of all of the candidates and include the normal strengths/weaknesses, what kind of manager do you prefer to work with, how would your boss describe you questions. Some interviews ask questions about behaviors, which make the interviews seem bizarre and not job-specific. I usually go into interviews with my own questions. I do research on the office, topics, students, and institution, and find unanswered questions through that research. I have also spent time doing all of that, and not finding anything to ask. I can then come up with questions regarding the position, such as work hours, unique challenges, and what kinds of students/populations utilize the office. I've had one interview, on the ph...

Another interview, and life got in the way. I had an interview at a great, local community college. The position would be part-time, and the interview was supposed to take an hour. I had two choices of days, Tuesday or Wednesday, between 9 and 5. I chose Wednesday at 9, thinking I should get out by 10 and be to work only a few minutes late. That morning I found my interview clothes were still wet from the washer, and they didn't dry in time for me to leave. Daisy had a difficult time taking her medicine. And it was raining. So I threw on a dress and a shall, belted it so it would look more conservative, and ran out the door. I was there early, the interview started late. I had already had the campus tour on a previous interview, so they took me directly to the interview. I was excited, because now it should only have been 30 minutes and I could be on time for work! The interview was very informal, which was nice. We discussed the position, my strengths and weaknesses, and what th...