Is it OK to ask firms to interview me outside of a job fair instead? Forum

[Anonymous User]

Got 1 screener from a minority job fair that I want, and 2 that I don't but pay market. Would hate to pay $800 for 20 mins face time. Is it OK to ask the firm to interview me in its office or OCI or another job fair instead? These options would be free for me. The job fair does not allow contacting employers until I confirm going to the screeners, so I'll have to risk asking the firms after rejecting the screeners. Has anyone done this before? Is this a dick move? Chance of success?

[LaLiLuLeLo]

No, wtf? You shouldn't have signed up for the job fair if you had no intention of going.

[lolwat]

No, wtf? You shouldn't have signed up for the job fair if you had no intention of going.

Yeah this is what I would say. You signed up knowing there's a chance you have to travel for few interviews. That being said, others on TLS seem more forgiving/encouraging when it comes to things like this so I suppose I'd wait for one of them to weigh in.

[Cloture]

No, wtf? You shouldn't have signed up for the job fair if you had no intention of going.

Don't be a jerk/dumb. OP didn't know how many screeners they would get when they submitted for the job fair. It's stupid for someone to travel across the country for an alternate position or a single screener or whatever.

Idk this is tricky. The non-contact requirement is weird. Do you know how many oci screeners you have yet? I can see firms declining to do interviews outside of the fair for you because it's too much trouble logistically.

[LaLiLuLeLo]

No, wtf? You shouldn't have signed up for the job fair if you had no intention of going.

Don't be a jerk/dumb. OP didn't know how many screeners they would get when they submitted for the job fair. It's stupid for someone to travel across the country for an alternate position or a single screener or whatever.

Idk this is tricky. The non-contact requirement is weird. Do you know how many oci screeners you have yet? I can see firms declining to do interviews outside of the fair for you because it's too much trouble logistically.

It's stupid and dumb to sign up for a job fair, get interviews, and now balk at going.

[Carlton_Banks]

No, wtf? You shouldn't have signed up for the job fair if you had no intention of going.

Yeah this is what I would say. You signed up knowing there's a chance you have to travel for few interviews. That being said, others on TLS seem more forgiving/encouraging when it comes to things like this so I suppose I'd wait for one of them to weigh in.

I don't agree with these posters. OP, I'm assuming you signed up for the job fair in the expectation that you'd get more than a few interviews, such that the expense of traveling would be worth it. It seems that reality has fallen short of expectations. And if you've weighed your options, and you've come to the conclusion that you don't think a 20 minute screener is worth $800 and the time it takes to travel, then cancel the screeners. For all those people griping about signing up for the fair and not going: most of these fairs have a cancellation window because they expect people to bail if they're unhappy with their matches.

I'd then e-mail the one firm's recruiter, tell them that you won't be able to make the job fair, but express your interest in interviewing at their convenience in the city you're in. They might not respond, in which case you've lost yourself a screener and the only person to blame is yourself.

[LaLiLuLeLo]

No, wtf? You shouldn't have signed up for the job fair if you had no intention of going.

Yeah this is what I would say. You signed up knowing there's a chance you have to travel for few interviews. That being said, others on TLS seem more forgiving/encouraging when it comes to things like this so I suppose I'd wait for one of them to weigh in.

I don't agree with these posters. OP, I'm assuming you signed up for the job fair in the expectation that you'd get more than a few interviews, such that the expense of traveling would be worth it. It seems that reality has fallen short of expectations. And if you've weighed your options, and you've come to the conclusion that you don't think a 20 minute screener is worth $800 and the time it takes to travel, then cancel the screeners. For all those people griping about signing up for the fair and not going: most of these fairs have a cancellation window because they expect people to bail if they're unhappy with their matches.

I'd then e-mail the one firm's recruiter, tell them that you won't be able to make the job fair, but express your interest in interviewing at their convenience in the city you're in. They might not respond, in which case you've lost yourself a screener and the only person to blame is yourself.

Outside of OCI, what job fairs even give you the opportunity to have more than a few interviews? I did a few when I was in law school and it seemed even the tippy top students never got more than a handful. Expecting more is foolish. Not wanting to spend $800 for a job is also foolish. Suck it up.

[UVA2B]

No, wtf? You shouldn't have signed up for the job fair if you had no intention of going.

Yeah this is what I would say. You signed up knowing there's a chance you have to travel for few interviews. That being said, others on TLS seem more forgiving/encouraging when it comes to things like this so I suppose I'd wait for one of them to weigh in.

I don't agree with these posters. OP, I'm assuming you signed up for the job fair in the expectation that you'd get more than a few interviews, such that the expense of traveling would be worth it. It seems that reality has fallen short of expectations. And if you've weighed your options, and you've come to the conclusion that you don't think a 20 minute screener is worth $800 and the time it takes to travel, then cancel the screeners. For all those people griping about signing up for the fair and not going: most of these fairs have a cancellation window because they expect people to bail if they're unhappy with their matches.

I'd then e-mail the one firm's recruiter, tell them that you won't be able to make the job fair, but express your interest in interviewing at their convenience in the city you're in. They might not respond, in which case you've lost yourself a screener and the only person to blame is yourself.

If the OP was just cancelling, then sure. But they're looking to reach out to the firm to interview on their own convenience, as opposed to the firm's convenience at the job fair. If the OP just wants to cancel, there will likely be alternates there waiting to be interviewed, and no one would bat an eyelash at that. But going so far as to request they change their interviewing schedule just comes off poorly and would probably end badly for them. I suppose either way (cancelling or looking bad) doesn't change the eventual outcome, but if the OP really wants a job at that firm, they need to play the game and go to the fair IMO.

[RaceJudicata]

Three interviews at a job fair is about all you can expect.

[Carlton_Banks]

If the OP was just cancelling, then sure. But they're looking to reach out to the firm to interview on their own convenience, as opposed to the firm's convenience at the job fair. If the OP just wants to cancel, there will likely be alternates there waiting to be interviewed, and no one would bat an eyelash at that. But going so far as to request they change their interviewing schedule just comes off poorly and would probably end badly for them. I suppose either way (cancelling or looking bad) doesn't change the eventual outcome, but if the OP really wants a job at that firm, they need to play the game and go to the fair IMO.

I think OP recognizes that there is a certain amount of risk in cancelling his screener and requesting a more convenient one, otherwise he wouldn't have mentioned the word in his original post.

As for the "requesting they change their interviewing schedule" - I think most firms interviewing schedules can accommodate one more 20 minute screener at their office. If that weren't the case, then why does TLS have such a hard-on for mass mailing?

OP would just have to word his request in a way that isn't: "I'm too lazy and cheap to go to the fair I signed up for. Move around your schedule to make this work for me." Genuflect, be appreciative, do not come off as entitled. Maybe reach out to a partner who shares your heritage.

But, OP, if your grades suck and you're coming from a bad school, and your OCI outlook appears grim, then yea, you should probably just suck it up and go.

[whats an updog]

This will be (probably) be fine if you are a top candidate anyway.

Otherwise it's simply a risk that you make a bad impression with these firms. Seems obvious to me that if that risk is worth the cost of your flight to you, you should go for it. No one here can tell you whether the specific recruiter or firm in question will find this to be poor form or not. Just hope you get a job somehow or you'll be kicking yourself down the line.

[2014]

Idk what city you are coming from or going to, but if it is a one day job fair i strongly suspect you can get costs to lower than $800 if that is the issue (or is the job fair charging you that much for registration?).

[Anonymous User]

I somewhat disagree with the other posters. $800 is a lot of money to pay for one screener. I think that you should reach out to the recruiter, explain the position that you are in in a way that doesn't make it seem like nobody else wanted to interview you (and also in a way that doesn't indicate that you can't afford the ticket, because people are biased against the poor), and offer to come in to the local office to interview. Also say that if they can only interview you at the job fair, you will go to the job fair.

I just returned from SEMJF, which I believe was a waste of time, since I only interviewed with 1 firm that I am interested in. I had other screeners, but I knew going in I wasn't interested. In retrospect, I wish I had violated the sacred "do not contact the firms directly" rule and just reached out to that one firm and politely explained that I was only interested in them and would be happy to come interview with them in their local office at their convenience. I would not ask them to interview me at another job fair or at my own school's OCI. But if your target office of your target firm is where you are now, I think the odds are good that they'd be happy to interview you in their office. From their perspective, if they're interested in you, they can say yes and then interview an alternate at the job fair.

Firms want to interview candidates that they might hire. At the end of the day, if they're interested in you, they'll proceed and if they're not, they won't. Fuck spending $800 for 20 minutes.

Apologize for the anon, but don't want to out myself.

[Anonymous User]

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[RaceJudicata]

I somewhat disagree with the other posters. $800 is a lot of money to pay for one screener. I think that you should reach out to the recruiter, explain the position that you are in in a way that doesn't make it seem like nobody else wanted to interview you (and also in a way that doesn't indicate that you can't afford the ticket, because people are biased against the poor), and offer to come in to the local office to interview. Also say that if they can only interview you at the job fair, you will go to the job fair.

I just returned from SEMJF, which I believe was a waste of time, since I only interviewed with 1 firm that I am interested in. I had other screeners, but I knew going in I wasn't interested. In retrospect, I wish I had violated the sacred "do not contact the firms directly" rule and just reached out to that one firm and politely explained that I was only interested in them and would be happy to come interview with them in their local office at their convenience. I would not ask them to interview me at another job fair or at my own school's OCI. But if your target office of your target firm is where you are now, I think the odds are good that they'd be happy to interview you in their office. From their perspective, if they're interested in you, they can say yes and then interview an alternate at the job fair.

Firms want to interview candidates that they might hire. At the end of the day, if they're interested in you, they'll proceed and if they're not, they won't. Fuck spending $800 for 20 minutes.

Apologize for the anon, but don't want to out myself.

I mean... in a way folks are paying $200k+ for X number of screeners during OCI. If it lands you a job it's money well spent.