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Rank: Newbie
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hello, fellow librarians!
so just to give you set up... I recently applied for an academic librarian position, and went for a day-long on-campus interview. I was not offered the job, and found out from the hiring official via an e-mail.
is this typical? I would just think that after spending the day with the hiring agent, he/she (or the HR official) would at least have the courtesy to call and let me know the position has been offered to another candidate. Or am I being too sensitive?
Thanks in advance for your thoughts!
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I think ideally, you're right. But, in actuality, you're luckier than some that I've heard of. I've heard tales of people interviewing and receiving a standardized rejection via snail-mail. Worse yet, I've heard of people who have NEVER heard back from the search committee... they find out they weren't hired when someone else's name shows up on the library website. My guess is that in a lot of cases, these folks are trying to get away from any situation which may open opportunities for confrontation. There's a lot of legal stuff involved, and if you're on the phone with someone, it gives them a chance to say "Why wasn't I hired?", which can be a can of worms (they never know how you or other candidates will react!).
So, are you being overly-sensitive? No. It's never fun to get invested in something and then not feel that your effort is recognized. But the reality is that some search committees or institutions just don't get it. Either they don't remember what it's like to be on the other side of the table, or they don't get the kind of training that reminds them. Or, they're just trying to ensure that they don't put themselves in a potentially litigious situation.
My advice is to take it as a sign... maybe in the long run, this wouldn't have been the right job environment for you anyway!
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You should consider yourself lucky to have found out at all. Most schools don't even bother to let you know if they decided to hire someone else. I had one school send me a press release lauding the person they did hire!!
It could be worse. I know of a school that, for years, had a para-professional, on their own initiative, enforce a policy of not interviewing or hiring anyone for a staff position who had an MLS. So you had people, literally, for years, applying for staff jobs only to receive a letter stating "We have hired a better qualified candidate." Can you imagine what that does to someone's self confidence? The institution knowingly sent out letters to candidates with misleading information. Or, you get hate mail -- Wait until you get a four page single spaced letter from a library dean you've interviewed with attacking your very right to be in the profession.
My advice: Interview and move on. 90 percent of the time they decide not to hire anyone at all so it doesn't matter whether they call you back or not. The reality is that employers (or potential employers) can do anything (and I mean anything -- legal or illegal -- they want to employees (or candidates) and there's nothing that you can do about it.
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I agree that it is not commonplace to receive a rejection letter/notice in ANY form these days. I would not take an email rejection letter personally - it is a trend of the times. Best wishes in your job search!
Check out the Talking Books Librarian blog at http://talkingbookslibrarian.blogspot.com
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One other aspect ... most applications come via e-mail. Rejections via e-mail are because so many (of us!) equate e-mail with snail mail.
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Actually be happy you heard at all. And HR people rely heavily on email (or snail mail) as it clearly documents what was or was not told to you. It protects them in this law suit happy culture we live.
Brian C. Gray Head of Reference & Engineering Librarian Kelvin Smith Library Case Western Reserve University http://blog.case.edu/bcg8bcg8@case.edu
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anothersearcher wrote:But the reality is that some search committees or institutions just don't get it. In the majority of organizations, the search committee is not allowed to communicate with a candidate outside the actual interview. Legally and procedurally, HR does not what people taking these steps. Things change too much and the HR people are trained and educated in these matters, but search committee people may only participate once very few years.
Brian C. Gray Head of Reference & Engineering Librarian Kelvin Smith Library Case Western Reserve University http://blog.case.edu/bcg8bcg8@case.edu
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goodlibrarian wrote:I know of a school that, for years, had a para-professional, on their own initiative, enforce a policy of not interviewing or hiring anyone for a staff position who had an MLS. So you had people, literally, for years, applying for staff jobs only to receive a letter stating "We have hired a better qualified candidate." Can you imagine what that does to someone's self confidence? The institution knowingly sent out letters to candidates with misleading information. Exactly how is this misleading? If the organization believes that MLS-holders should not work in a paraprofessional positions, than according to their culture the other person is more qualified. Organizations do not look at increasing skills or experiences as "more qualified". They judge qualified by if you meet their needs. And as a side note, I do not agree that a MLS holder should be outright barred from a paraprofessional. But with the costs of the job hunting, training, benefits, etc., I see why some organizations will avoid a person that might jump immediately at other opportunities that are a better fit for their education.
Brian C. Gray Head of Reference & Engineering Librarian Kelvin Smith Library Case Western Reserve University http://blog.case.edu/bcg8bcg8@case.edu
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I guess my answer to that is two points:
1) This wasn't an organizational decision as such, but a single individual deciding, on their own initiative, to enforce their position which was "MLS degree holders shouldn't be allowed to have staff positions." They had no authority to do this as I understand the situation. Would you like it if a staff member processing applications decided on their own initiative to reject all the applicants with obviously asian names?
2) It may be that an MLS degree means those people weren't the best qualified for those positions, but, then, doesn't that sort of create a hidden job requirement. Would you think it fair if the job required a knowledge of French, but that was nowhere in the ad? If you don't want MLS degree holders in staff positions that's fine. In the rejection letter you say "We have a policy of not hiring people for positions for which they are obviously overqualified -- as is the case with you for this position." Then everyone knows where they stand, they don't waste time with future applications, etc etc.
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A reply via e-mail is pretty standard, as far as I can tell, whether it is from an academic or a public library. I don't know from experience about corporate, but I would guess that is probably the norm for them also. It seems tacky if you are being rejected, but so does a nice watermarked, deckle sheet of paper. If you are trying to receive a reason why you were rejected, you will most likely get a circular reason--there were other candidates who were better qualified. It is a legal nightmare to answer those questions, as others have noted.
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I worked for a while in the HR office of an academic library that wouldn't hire an MLS for a paraprofessional position, which was basically considered taking advantage of someone (that's not how the policy was written, but that's what it meant). I also believe for paraprofessional positions, rejection letters went through the university HR, not the library HR. In any case, there were often so many applications that no one was getting a personalized rejection letter. In either case, a phone call before hand, asking, "Would you accept an application from an MLS holder for this position?" would have been welcome.
Now, if you get an interview and are rejected, a personal letter can be nice, a great courtesy. But, a rejection by any other name still stinks.
A colleague of mine with a high school senior observed that all the schools to which her son had applied sent acceptance or rejection notes via email. It makes sense: it's cost-efficient and quick.
I'd rather get a rejection via email than wait a few more days to get a letter.
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goodlibrarian wrote:1) This wasn't an organizational decision as such, but a single individual deciding, on their own initiative, to enforce their position which was "MLS degree holders shouldn't be allowed to have staff positions." They had no authority to do this as I understand the situation. Would you like it if a staff member processing applications decided on their own initiative to reject all the applicants with obviously asian names? First, if they were in a position to make this decision, where they not in the right to make that decision for the organization? Second, your example is not the same and also it is protected by law. Overqualified can be just as much a problem as underqualified for an organization as it can cause problems within the management style, communication style, or just plain relationships between employees.
Brian C. Gray Head of Reference & Engineering Librarian Kelvin Smith Library Case Western Reserve University http://blog.case.edu/bcg8bcg8@case.edu
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goodlibrarian wrote:In the rejection letter you say "We have a policy of not hiring people for positions for which they are obviously overqualified -- as is the case with you for this position." Then everyone knows where they stand, they don't waste time with future applications, etc etc. Not hiring overqualified people happens in all positions, organizations, and professions. It is very common. There is a desire for an organization to hire the best candidate that not only meets the need of the position but the style and personality of the organization.
Brian C. Gray Head of Reference & Engineering Librarian Kelvin Smith Library Case Western Reserve University http://blog.case.edu/bcg8bcg8@case.edu
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