(no subject)
Just signed my letter of offer from Public Safety to extend my contract through April. I got a raise too and am now at the top pay bracket for Masters students.
I got a call on Friday (while at the bakery!) from DFAIT. I expected the news to be good because the interview had been Thursday and I had been told that they would get back to me during the next week. The contact was going on about how impressed they were with my skills and experience and blah blah. I silently waited to be told that they went with a different candidate as there are two positions and three candidates who made it through the prescreening. But what she went on to say was that there was a problem with the new internship program as it is not part of DFAIT's "usual stream." This is probably funtionnaise for somebody tried to set up the program but a higher up vetoed it on security grounds. She explained that they were considering making it a part-time, paid position instead, but no offers could be made until she consults the proper channels. The fact that I am currently employed by the federal government and hold a higher security clearance than was necessary for the internship probably played as much of a role here as my skills, because getting secret clearance involves ten years of background checks by the RCMP and CSIS.
So at present I neither have or do not have a DFAIT internship and it might turn into a DFAIT job. During the interview they also repeatedly mentioned a full-time position in the summer. I think my security clearance and FSWEP registration could really help me with that because they were very interested in my prior employment through FSWEP. I had to send them a bunch of biographical information today. We will see what happens. As much as I want a job, I also need credit for one more class for my MA. The holidays and the fact that the internship coordinator also runs an NGO will delay matters further.
I got a call on Friday (while at the bakery!) from DFAIT. I expected the news to be good because the interview had been Thursday and I had been told that they would get back to me during the next week. The contact was going on about how impressed they were with my skills and experience and blah blah. I silently waited to be told that they went with a different candidate as there are two positions and three candidates who made it through the prescreening. But what she went on to say was that there was a problem with the new internship program as it is not part of DFAIT's "usual stream." This is probably funtionnaise for somebody tried to set up the program but a higher up vetoed it on security grounds. She explained that they were considering making it a part-time, paid position instead, but no offers could be made until she consults the proper channels. The fact that I am currently employed by the federal government and hold a higher security clearance than was necessary for the internship probably played as much of a role here as my skills, because getting secret clearance involves ten years of background checks by the RCMP and CSIS.
So at present I neither have or do not have a DFAIT internship and it might turn into a DFAIT job. During the interview they also repeatedly mentioned a full-time position in the summer. I think my security clearance and FSWEP registration could really help me with that because they were very interested in my prior employment through FSWEP. I had to send them a bunch of biographical information today. We will see what happens. As much as I want a job, I also need credit for one more class for my MA. The holidays and the fact that the internship coordinator also runs an NGO will delay matters further.