In a message dated Fri, 4 Aug 2000 11:04:18 AM Eastern Daylight Time, John Martinson <[log in to unmask]> writes:

>>>I think professionalism is a two way street.  A professional organization
should
send courtesy letters back to all those who applied for a position saying
that the job was filled.

Here here!! I recently interviewed at a major US institution who paid for my plane ticket to go and see them. Everything through the interview was handled very well. Their parting words to me were to send them my taxi receipts to get reembursed. I thought this was a great deal.

Well over a month later, I hadn't heard anything from them about the interview and I still hadn't gotten my reembursement. I finally e-mailed the HR director and got a vague "we've made our selection" response. No offical rejection letter or even an e-mail. I had taken an entire day off of my current job to fly up there and back and promptly sent them what they requested along with a nice thank-you card and I have to contact THEM to get an answer? I was appalled. It's now almost 3 months later and my check from the cab receipts just came in the mail.

After that sort of treatment, I wouldn't want to work for this institution even if they did offer me a job. I've had the same treatment from other instutitions as well. One asked me to yet again take a day off of work and drive 3 hours to an interview, which turned out to be a preliminary screening interview that could have easily been done over the phone. Again this was a major name US institution.

Please people, if you are in charge of hiring, brush up on some basic HR skills. Little things like a post card to say that an application has been received and boiler plate rejection letters should be standard. If you're screening people out, don't make them come in unless they are local and it's convenient. Send some sort of TIMELY response to everyone that you contact, even if it is a rejection letter as you don't want to keep people hanging, esp. if they had to travel a ways to make an interview or you paid their expenses to come in. We all understand that museum hiring can oftne take a month or more esp. if it's a big institution but job hunters need to be kept informed of their status so they can move on. People don't mind waiting a bit if they're in the running but most will get irky if they were rejected right off and it took a over month for them to be notified. And there's nothing more frustrating than getting an acceptance letter or call right after you've taken ano!
ther job because you thought the first job had blown you off.

Deb

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