I have been thinking about this a lot. I think a few days to consider is
reasonable. Most employers would not expect you to say yes on the spot. If they
did, I would say "I am definitely interested - I really think I am well suited to
work in your school and that we will do great things together. Would you mind if I
called you on __ (two days from now?) If it required relocating they'd expect to
give you more time and there might be other financial details to work out as well.
While I agree with what some others have written (you are interviewing them as
well, you want to find out why they are trying to move so quickly), I would think
that I I might need more information from them - why is this position available?
However, if I had a good feel from the interview and my research showed it was a
good school - one whose philosophy and methods I agreed with, I would be prepared
to say yes. I know it is hard to get a position these days and this is prime job
hunting time for school media specialists.
Margie Jones, MLS
Media Specialist
South Street School
129 South Street
Danbury, CT 06482
-----Original Message-----
From: Angie Brunk <abrunk@mailclerk.ecok.edu>
To: okitokee@gmail.com; <eec@arete-ny.com> <newlib-l@usc.edu>
Sent: Wed, Jul 7, 2010 10:20 am
Subject: Re: Hypothetical question
You do not want to work for an organization that would rescind an offer
because you wanted a week to think it over. What would they try if you
accepted the job?
On 7/3/10 4:14 PM, "Okito Kee" <okitokee@gmail.com> wrote:
> Thanks to each of you for your insights, especially on this holiday weekend.
> Very helpful.
>
> I, too, had the experience that Jenny described a few years back. The
> employer agreed to give me 5 days to consider the offer, only to rescind it
> after 2 days. I learned (too late) that they interpreted my request for time
> to consider as "ambivalence," and moved on to another candidate.
>
> I definitely do not want to misread the "signs" when I encounter the next
> job offer.
>
> On Sat, Jul 3, 2010 at 3:16 PM, Jenny <mooneyes7@yahoo.com> wrote:
>
>> I'm sure you will get some good answers for this. In the past I have
>> asked for a week to think about a job offer. I will warn you one time when
>> I did this, they rescinded the offer about 4 days later. (They decided
>> not to hire a librarian and instead promote a clerical worker). It was a
>> similar situation to yours, they offered me the job while I was still on
>> site.
>>
>> Some places do want someone to be on the job as soon as possible for a
>> number of reasons.
>>
>> Good luck.
>>
>> Jenny Finch
>>
>> "Do not look upon this world with fear and loathing.
>> Bravely face whatever the gods offer."
>> --Morihei Ueshiba
>>
>>
>> --- On *Sat, 7/3/10, Okito Kee <okitokee@gmail.com>* wrote:
>>
>>
>> From: Okito Kee <okitokee@gmail.com>
>> Subject: Hypothetical question
>>
>> To: "NewLib" <NEWLIB-L@usc.edu>
>> Date: Saturday, July 3, 2010, 2:07 PM
>>
>>
>> Hello,
>>
>> This is a general hypothetical question...
>>
>> If I had a job offer from an academic institution, and I needed time to
>> think about whether I wanted to accept, is there a recommended number of
>> days I can request to consider? Is there a maximum that doesn't cross into
>> sounding too ambivalent?
>>
>> I have an upcoming job interview, and the institution seems to be moving
>> very quickly through the process (short notice for the phone and in-person
>> interviews, requesting transcipts, already calling references). I'm
>> suspecting that if the job is offered, they will expect a similar fast
>> turnaround time with my answer.
>>
>> Any other or suggestions would be most welcome.
>>
>> Thanks!
>>
>>
>>
--
Angie Brunk MLS, MA
Reference, Outreach and Special Collections Librarian
East Central University
Ada, Oklahoma
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