Wednesday, July 13, 2011

Interview in review

I just had a phone interview about a corporate compliance position in a hospital.  The HR lady said she would be scheduling an in-person interview for me regarding both the position I applied for and a second, random position for which she thinks my skills would be a good fit.  I think it's safe to say I'm getting better at phone interviews.

I don't want to sound too pessimistic, but corporate compliance sounds like it sucks.  Sit around all day working with hospital rules and regulations?  If possible, that sounds more boring than law.  I'm really hoping one of the medical sales jobs comes through.

8 comments:

  1. Well-meaning question: How much time have you spent networking during your unemployment? I read that you are working angles through your family or random people in your french class, but what else? I think networking should be treated like your job until you get a job. The city is full of networking opportunities for young professionals, both in and out of the legal field (and a number of them are free). Also, are you involved in any nonprofits? This is a great way to develop new contacts. Pick a cause you actually care about (that way you are doing something worthwhile regardless) and show up at an event or ask if they need volunteers for a committee. Every good job I've had originated with someone in my network helping me out. The broader your network, the better your chances.

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  2. I suck at networking and it's admittedly an area where I need to improve. I'm generally a pretty personable guy, but I don't do well at networking events. If I'm in a room full of random people I don't know, which is what most networking events seem to be, I don't make any effort to wander around talking to people.

    I do better in an environment where there's some sort of common interest upon which to base interacting with other people. That's one reason why I like to do things like taking a French class, teaching kung fu and, if I find a good opportunity, volunteering. You meet a bunch of new people without the awkwardness of a networking event.

    All in all, you make a good point and I'm working on it.

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  3. Ah, the old "networking" recommendation. Are you actually naive enough to think the author is not networking, enough? I like this argument though and it usually benefits the baby boomer crowd - rather than acknowledge the underlying structural economic problems in the U.S., it shifts the blame to the applicant/entrepreneur. Can't find a job in your field after stalking the hell out of everybody you know in your field or related fields? Well, you must not be harassing them enough! Supply = demand.

    Here's a virtual spit in your face from my generation.

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  4. Big Meech: The sixty or so years after WWII were a golden age in the USA. We Boomers were lucky enough to live through it, and we (and everybody else) thought it would never end. Well, it's ended.
    It's an iron law of economics that people get paid according to how productive they are. Are you more productive than a lawyer in India? If not, you will get the same pay as they do. Unlike previous generations, you will not have a better standard pf living than your parents. Sorry, but that's just the way it is. Sucks to be you.

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  5. 12:58 AM - finally, some refreshing honesty from the boomer crowd. Although I'm not sure if productivity has a place in the argument. This assumes an equal cost of education, living, currency valuation, etc. I can't really address that point unless a multitude of variables are held in place. Assuming the Indian attorney was more productive that the average fellow at a big NYC firm, he'll still get paid far less in rupees. Assuming his work quality is equal to that of his American counterpart, which is probably the case, then should the American guy that spent $100 K at Yale be forced to take a $30 K salary? I suppose this is the argument, which definitely does suck for all of us.

    Not being an attorney anymore, but rather at a high tech energy company, I've seen the same scenario play out. Upon posting a job advertisement, usually for an engineering position, we have hundreds of applications globally. Poor engineers, they have it really, really bad. India guys will offer to complete the work for $10/hourly. There's no way an American graduate could ever afford to live on that wage.

    Now, that being said, I think it will be a very grim world for the boomers as well. As we slowly become a true banana republic, what usually happens to the oligarchs (a handful of fat cat boomers in this scneario)? Well, they get their fat asses robbed, kidnapped, etc. And why not? Who's going to stop this from happening - the cops sure aren't because they are us. This won't happen overnight, but luckily, I speak with the oligarchs daily and they are prepping - you should be too! Gold, land and guns my friend.

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  6. Corporate Compliance? Isn't that what Ted from Scrubs did?

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  7. Big Meech- I am the original poster of the networking comment. I'm not a baby boomer- I just turned 32. I understand that conditions are exceptionally worse than when I graduated law school in 2006, but I have successfully jumped jobs more than once (both as an attorney and in non-legal positions before law school, most recently in 2009) and each time it has been a "who you know" situation. I'm the first college graduate of any sort from my family with no one to fall back on but me (and over $100K in loans), so faced with that kind of sink or swim I got comfortable really fast with introducing myself to a group of strangers at free or low-cost networking events or other activity-based functions. I'm not saying it's a fool-proof way to a sweet gig or that D isn't doing this already. Just suggesting something since D posts a lot of info, but that was one area I didn't see him post about. I acknowledge how screwed up the "underlying structural economic problems" are and think law school grads are screwed. Unless/until things change, finding a good job as a law school grads (defined as a job that pays the bills and doesn't make you want to kill yourself) is like hitting the lottery. But you still have to play to win.

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  8. I'm pretty sure Ted was in-house counsel for Sacred Heart.

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