Dammit...
So I guess I ought to explain the previous post. Some of you may know that ovewr the past couple weeks I have been worrying about getting a callback from a company called RJA. They do fire protection consulting all over the world, and were looking for interns in various offices throughout the country.
I signed up for an interview, because I wanted some interview experience. I didn't at all expect to get anything other than being able to say I took a professional interview to better myself for others in the future. However, something happened that the college grad did not expect...
No, I didn't pick up any magical rings, but I got an email saying that they wanted to conduct a phone interview. Great. I totally wasn't expecting this to go any further than the half hour I spent with the guy for the interview. Here's where the fun begins: do I humor this and take the phone call? Of course, I do, because its bad professional form to ignore requests for such things. So I set up a time.
It gets better. Phone rings, I pick up. I spent about 30 minutes on the phone with the man in Atlanta. Five minutes in, he's already offered me the position for the year. I'm panicking at this point. Situation beyond my wildest dreams? Yes. They pay well, give me a nice stipend to pay for school with, full benefits, relocation, etc. Sounds like a no-brainer right? For most people, they would have kindly accepted the job, hung up the phone, and would be jumping for joy and screaming and such.
My reaction? After telling him my situation (which I will explain later) and having him also offer me a summer internship in lieu of the full year, I calmly hung up the phone, tossed it on my bed, and punched a wall. I thought to myself, "why oh why did I sign up for that first interview?"
I am torn on the decision to move halfway across the country to take on a position that would ultimately have me with my foot in the doors of one of the largest consulting firms in the world, or to stay here in worcester, either to finish my degree completely without an internship or to finish partially and try again next year.
You all can probably guess why I haven't packed up my things already and started driving to Georgia. Kate returns in June. I have gone through hell and highwater for the past nine months not having her around. And now I have the chance to leave? Part of my brain decided to take a vacation after this decision needed to be made. It has yet to return, and the rest of the brain council is in a stalemate trying to find an answer. Also, if I left in June, I would miss my cousin's wedding, and all of the relatives I never see that are associated with that. I also have a family vacation in October, and while I would have paid vacation time, using a week of that at once would strain the rest of the year.
No matter how many opinions I get on this subject, it never seems to be enough. My brain can't decide if I can take another year without Kate, and without all of my friends for that matter. A year is a long time to be alone. Two years doubly so, plus more.
Option 1: Take the job now
Option 2: Take the job at the end of the summer
Option 3: Take the summer option, June through August
Option 4: Take the summer option, July through September
There's more than meets the eye to this, but I've ran out of time...back to proctoring the lab.
So is it better to have interviewed and lost to your mind, or never to have interviewed at all?
Upon speaking with my advisor and giving this some more thought, I have gone with option 5 (not shown above) which is wait it out. I have some time to think, but I'm not going to take the summer option or the year option. I could possibly go in January, but I might wait. I learned that companies that offer these things so early are just trying to secure engineers for the future, as we are in such high demand. Although that $20k for school was enticing, I'm not ready to flip my life 180 degrees for a job.
I signed up for an interview, because I wanted some interview experience. I didn't at all expect to get anything other than being able to say I took a professional interview to better myself for others in the future. However, something happened that the college grad did not expect...
No, I didn't pick up any magical rings, but I got an email saying that they wanted to conduct a phone interview. Great. I totally wasn't expecting this to go any further than the half hour I spent with the guy for the interview. Here's where the fun begins: do I humor this and take the phone call? Of course, I do, because its bad professional form to ignore requests for such things. So I set up a time.
It gets better. Phone rings, I pick up. I spent about 30 minutes on the phone with the man in Atlanta. Five minutes in, he's already offered me the position for the year. I'm panicking at this point. Situation beyond my wildest dreams? Yes. They pay well, give me a nice stipend to pay for school with, full benefits, relocation, etc. Sounds like a no-brainer right? For most people, they would have kindly accepted the job, hung up the phone, and would be jumping for joy and screaming and such.
My reaction? After telling him my situation (which I will explain later) and having him also offer me a summer internship in lieu of the full year, I calmly hung up the phone, tossed it on my bed, and punched a wall. I thought to myself, "why oh why did I sign up for that first interview?"
I am torn on the decision to move halfway across the country to take on a position that would ultimately have me with my foot in the doors of one of the largest consulting firms in the world, or to stay here in worcester, either to finish my degree completely without an internship or to finish partially and try again next year.
You all can probably guess why I haven't packed up my things already and started driving to Georgia. Kate returns in June. I have gone through hell and highwater for the past nine months not having her around. And now I have the chance to leave? Part of my brain decided to take a vacation after this decision needed to be made. It has yet to return, and the rest of the brain council is in a stalemate trying to find an answer. Also, if I left in June, I would miss my cousin's wedding, and all of the relatives I never see that are associated with that. I also have a family vacation in October, and while I would have paid vacation time, using a week of that at once would strain the rest of the year.
No matter how many opinions I get on this subject, it never seems to be enough. My brain can't decide if I can take another year without Kate, and without all of my friends for that matter. A year is a long time to be alone. Two years doubly so, plus more.
Option 1: Take the job now
Option 2: Take the job at the end of the summer
Option 3: Take the summer option, June through August
Option 4: Take the summer option, July through September
There's more than meets the eye to this, but I've ran out of time...back to proctoring the lab.
So is it better to have interviewed and lost to your mind, or never to have interviewed at all?
Upon speaking with my advisor and giving this some more thought, I have gone with option 5 (not shown above) which is wait it out. I have some time to think, but I'm not going to take the summer option or the year option. I could possibly go in January, but I might wait. I learned that companies that offer these things so early are just trying to secure engineers for the future, as we are in such high demand. Although that $20k for school was enticing, I'm not ready to flip my life 180 degrees for a job.