<p>I had to make taking the specific day off on which I will drive up to my daughter’s college to pick her up a condition of my acceptance of the job. Even if it inconveniences my employer to allow me to take that day as a vacation day, I’m going to get it. And it may indeed inconvenience them since my job involves attending prescheduled conferences at various locations in our metropolitan area. If one is scheduled for that day, they will have a problem. Also, there will be one day within a week of that day off when I will need to modify my hours slightly in order to pick up a rental car. </p>
<p>I also had to ask my new employer for another special concession. I have to finish up some projects for my former freelance clients, and some of the work will not be done before my starting date at the new job. Even though I will do the freelance work on my own time, I will occasionally need to communicate with my clients during business hours. Therefore, I asked for permission to access my personal e-mail from the company’s computer during my lunch hour. The company does not not ordinarily permit any use of their computers for personal business, but they have made this concession for me on a temporary basis.</p>
<p>I feel that I’ve pushed them about as far as I can reasonably expect them to go, given that this is only a mid-level job.</p>
<p>Suggested asking only because you just accepted and sons graduation was already planned prior to accepting the offer. Probably would have been easier to roll it in with your other needs had you thought about it. But I agree, uncomfortable to ask now.</p>
<p>30 yrs ago husband asked for a week off w/out pay right after he was hired. They scoffed, of course, until he mentioned it was his wedding day :)</p>
<p>It’s too late now but I would have gone over all the prior commitments when you accepted the job. You could still go back and say “I made a mistake; I would like to take this day off as well” as long as you’re willing to accept no for an answer.</p>
<p>As for offers on the spot, I’ve gotten a few, twice as a tech writer and once as a teacher. In all three cases, looking back, I can see that the situation was desperate, I met minimal standards, and they had no one else to interview. In the teaching job, for example, it was three weeks into the school year and two subs had already refused to continue with the class after a few days with them. One of the high tech jobs closed its doors a few months later.</p>
<p>After those experiences, an offer on the spot would cause me to run the other way.</p>
<p>I didn’t think it appropriate to ask for my son’s graduation day off during the negotiation process because it was not a necessity. It would be nice to be able to attend the ceremony, but I don’t truly have to be there. (I do have to help him move out of his off-campus apartment, but that will take place over a weekend, separate from graduation.)</p>
<p>On the other hand, picking up my daughter at college is a necessity. I can’t abandon her up there with all her possessions on the sidewalk. If the company had said no to that, I would have turned down the job.</p>
<p>I didn’t want to jeopardize the job offer by asking for unnecessary concessions. I have asked for several necessary ones – maybe too many. For all I know, I may be already starting this job on the wrong foot. I hope not, though.</p>
<p>Well, my daughter had a big-deal fun graduation ceremony which we went to and my son (and my husband and I) skipped his graduation ceremony–can’t remember where your son is, but I hope it’s not a big deal to skip it.</p>
<p>My son is at the University of Maryland. There is an all-university ceremony on a Thursday evening (which I will try to get to, but given rush hour traffic plus the extra traffic generated by a major university event, I have only about a 50/50 chance of making it on time), followed by ceremonies the next morning for each of the schools within the university, at which names are called and diplomas are distributed.</p>
<p>I don’t know whether any fun is involved, actually. But my son skipped his high school graduation ceremony for reasons that made sense to him at the time, so this is probably the only graduation he will ever participate in. That makes it important.</p>
<p>What kind of questions are asked during job interviews? Are they all related to potential job you are interviewing for? I have a job interview next week. This is my very first job interview.</p>
<p>I suggest you also learn what questions are inappropriate for a job interview. Things like ‘You’re young. Are you going to get married/pregnant and leave right away?’ “Are you born-again?” “How many boyfriends/girlfriends/etc. do you have?” “Where do you bank?” </p>
<p>There’s lots on the 'net, not only what they shouldn’t ask, but what you should do if they do ask.</p>
<p>Good luck in your job search. Don’t forget to do some research into the company so you can ask intelligent questions about their business, plans, and people. It will also help you answer the notorious question…“Why do you want to work here?”</p>
<p>I think you should have a discussion with your manager about taking the day of your son’s graduation off either without pay or by making up for it by working a Saturday or something (I don’t know what type of job you have). It’s not that unusual that someone would want to take a day for an important event like this and the world doesn’t always revolve around someone’s ‘accrued vacation time’.</p>
<p>As a manager, I’d probably be somewhat upset to discover an employee missed an important event like their kid’s graduation just because they didn’t feel comfortable coming to me and discussing a way to be able to make it. Also, if there is going to be a major issue with something like this it’s best to find out now so you can think about whether you really want to work at an inflexible place or not.</p>
<p>This will probably be on the interview questions sites you’ll research but a few important ones - </p>
<ul>
<li>dress and groom appropriately</li>
<li>smile, project a good sense of humor</li>
<li>look the interviewer in the eye when you talk and listen</li>
<li>be confident without being overbearing</li>
<li>know something about the company - what they do, their locations, size, position in their marketplace, their top few competitors, etc.</li>
<li>understand how you’d contribute to their company and be able to state why you’d like to work there</li>
<li>at the end of the interview, it’s okay to ask when to expect to hear from them if they don’t volunteer the info but don’t ask “so how’d I do?” or “do I get the job?”</li>
<li>if you’re in a technical field, be prepared for a technical interview with tests and detailed technical questions. Some can be grueling.</li>
</ul>
<p>A good segue for asking is - if they ask you if you have any questions, or, even if they don’t, when the interview ends, simply ask “what are the next steps”; also, if they are imprecise as to time frame of the next steps, follow it up with a question as to the time frame. </p>
<p>If you’re really, really interested in the job, and you sense that the interviewer is comfortable with your level of assertiveness, you can also ask “is there a timeframe that I might call you to follow up if I have not yet heard from you?”. That way you have laid the groundwork to call them if you haven’t heard from them after the expected period of time has passed. </p>
<p>Last, always send a thank you letter…</p>
<p>Marian, I totally agree with UCSD_. I too would be very, very upset if a staff member, particularly a new one, didn’t ask for the time off. And as a leader of people, it’s a very worthwhile investment to give a staff member time off for these things - and it’s the right thing to do. And I don’t think you want to work for a manager who doesn’t share that viewpoint. There are zillions of jobs available, even in a weak economy, but you son will graduate from undergrad only one time. As to the rest of it, I have never been offered a job on the first interview. I have always gotten every job and promotion I’ve ever applied for, and all of them have been 2-5 interview processes, plus back ground checks.</p>
<p>I’m only in college so I lack a lot of the experience you have, but I would have to say that I agree with Late and USCD. While I have only had 2 jobs, they were with 2 very different types of employers: one was with a very stringent, very “by the books” type place that was psychotic about following rules and protocol, and the other (my current job) is slightly more laid-back and people oriented. It is very refreshing to know that your employer treats you like a person and not just another worker, which is something I was unaware of until I had this second job.</p>
<p>You mentioned you’ve been doing lots of freelance for the past decades–perhaps you’re unfamiliar with the possibility of working for a company that puts its employees first? I know my mom was very surprised to learn that my current employer is so flexible because she had never experienced a workplace such as mine.</p>
<p>If you’re not comfortable going to your new boss, would talking to some of your new colleagues be an option? Maybe they’ve faced similar situations and can give you a feel for how your boss would handle your request for your son’s graduation. You’re right in that it’s not a necessity, but if it’s your son’s ONLY graduation…I’m sure you’d like to be there.</p>
<p>I think you’ll be pleasantly surprised to see how understanding people can be.</p>
<p>Marian, I agree about asking your employer for the day off as a first resort.</p>
<p>But you might have a plan B option. This May, D2 finishes with her exams on a Thursday. She’s staying on campus for the summer as she’s been cast in a summer production, but she has to move into a different dorm. Well, the date they gave her for moving into her summer dorm is the day (and weekend) of D1’s graduation three hours away. So I called D2’s residence living office and explained our dilemma. As it ends up, they will let her keep her stuff in her present dorm until she can return a week later when rehearsals begin, then move it over. There is a specific form she has to fill out to get the approval, but they understand the need for special accommodations. Perhaps if you can change the day you have to move your daughter out to a weekend, then you still only have to ask for one day off, but for your son’s graduation.</p>
<p>I agree with lts and ucdad completely btw. If I were a manager, I would also be pretty upset with myself if a new staff member felt they couldn’t come to me with a request for a day off for something as special as a child’s college graduation. If this manager were to find out later you missed the graduation because of the new job and fear of asking, it might even make things uncomfortable for him/her and you.</p>
<p>When I first entered public accounting, the job interview process went on for days…had to meet with practically every firm partner it seemed. But later after acquiring a pretty obscure speciality in gov’tal auditing, I found CPA firms willing to hire me on the spot. That area of public accounting isn’t very popular because it doesn’t usually lead to a CFO career at a high paying corporate audit client…therefore, not a lot of competition for those audit manager positions. So I think the timing of the offer is definitely something that varies.</p>
<p>After relocating to another city, I’ve even had a hiring partner call my old partner-in-charge/mentor for a reference right in FRONT of me…and soon as he got the good word, offer the position. (My old mentor was pretty prominent, member of the Auditing Standards Board of the AICPA, so I think the interviewing partner couldn’t resist checking out this ‘too good to be true’ reference.) </p>
<p>My advice on that front is always take the offer home and think about it. Just because they offered on the spot, doesn’t mean you have to accept on the spot.</p>
<p>Sorry, Idmom06, I didn’t read all of your post. I just read the last two paragraphs and so excited about accounting that I didn’t read the first three!</p>