I received another rejection today. This makes 8 rejections and no job offers so far. I am waiting to schedule a "second interview" with another employer this week once the program director is back from vacation. I put that in quotes as I am hoping by the sound of things and the official documents I had to send them, it will be a formality.
Not sure what I'm doing wrong. I'm getting interviews, so my paperwork, resume, and cover letter are not the problem. At first my interviewing was not polished, but around interviewing at the third district I had my groove. From that point on, with the exception of this latest rejection which was a one and done interview, I have made it to the final round. I don't think my interviewing is the problem either. I receive the same types of rejection emails/calls along the lines of, "Your credentials and experience were impressive, but we have ultimately selected another candidate. Thank you for your time." Obviously the chosen candidate is doing something I'm not or they might have more experience. I've asked for feedback in the past, but no one has bothered or the district has a "no feedback policy." Now I don't bother asking.
Today was the first day I broke down over a job. I didn't even particularly want the position, but it was a job with a decent salary and benefits. Everything is extremely stressful right now. I'm hoping that I can get an offer from the employer I'm waiting on. I have a couple of applications in at another district, but hiring here has stalled for now.
All I can say is that I have been there. I searched and tried for years to get a job in the area where I used to live - I was "good enough" to be a long-term sub, paraprofessional, and tutor, but never to have a full-time teaching job. Eventually, I started looking out of state and found a place where I am very happy. I've been teaching now 11 years.
It may take relocation.
Also - because of the pandemic, many schools have budget issues and uncertainty on when they will reopen and how.
I think it is fairly unheard of to get so many 2nd interviews! Feel good about that, because that tells you that you are doing many things correctly.
There are many reasons for this and depending on your area...
I do think this year will be a tough year to get a job due to cutbacks. Next year, too. This year in my area things at this point in time are really up in the air. My school has a position that we are interviewing, but I honestly don't know if we will be able to keep everyone. If a lot of parents enroll students in online schools, we have have to cut staff. How will that affect staffing? I don't know.
Stay flexible, keep your chin up, and if something else comes up you might want to consider it just in case. Schools are going to be a mess this year.
Can I ask how many years you have been teaching And do you have advanced degrees? The reason I ask is that I myself have 14 years of experience and 2 advanced degrees and am having a hard time finding a job because I’m too expensive for many districts to hire. One district declined to interview me because I was “overqualified”. Many years ago a grad school professor that was also a school superintendent told us that the best person doesn’t always get the job. The person the district can afford to hire does. Just giving you a different perspective.
I'll keep my fingers crossed for the current second interview you have coming. You have done an amazing job to get that many interviews and second round interviews! You have to remember that it's really not all about you. By that, I mean that you may be absolutely wonderful, but for whatever reason someone else gets the job. Maybe that other person is phenomenal, or has some other "in" to the position, or just connected with the interviewers on a personal level for some reason.
I hope this one is the charm!! It's so hard to not know why you aren't getting these positions.
Been there done that. Are these eight second interviews or eight interviews? (In our district there usually aren’t second interviews.)
Anyway I was wanting to get out of my last school and applied to just about anything within our large district that I thought I might be able to tolerate just to get out.
I learned a number of things: I have a lot more respect for admin that let you know you didn’t get the job. I feel like that’s common courtesy. I learned I didn’t like some schooler because I’d never hear from admin. They aren’t getting tons of emails so not responding is just laziness.
I learned sometimes the job is advertised and you might even do a good interview but they already have someone in mind for the job. It’s also possible they’re looking for something and it’s not me...like they might want a new teacher to balance an experienced team or someone who has a math background.
Honestly I’d learned that at least 60 percent of the jobs I went on weren’t ones I was going to get even if I had a perfect interview. Another 20 percent were open but fell into an area of my weakness. So maybe I had a good chance at one out of five interviews. And that was only if I didn’t screw up by having a rough interview or saying something that went against the schools philosophy. Why interview are hard...
ChemTeachHS, I had a similar experience: 17 years teaching, two advanced degrees. I did get a new job.
Thank you all for listening me vent. It was a pretty bad afternoon. I have since scheduled my second interview and the day after this post I was called from 3 different schools for interviews! I had one today at a Catholic school that went decently well, but I don't think it will be a good fit. I have 3 interviews coming up including the second interview.
ChemTeach: I have only two years of teaching experience, but I do have my BS and M.Ed. I'm not sure if my Master's is holding me back or not. A lot of schools in my area prefer a candidate with a Master's, but not all. I feel like my experience might be holding me back, but I don't know how I stack against other candidates.
Cruxian: It's all a mix. My first interview this application season was only a 1 interview process. My second interview at another district would have been a second round, but I did not make it there. The third interview at a different district made it to the second round, but hiring was cancelled due to budget issues. All my other 5 interviews have moved me to the second round, or they were intended to only be one and done interviews.
I have been in a similar situation. I dont officially have a full year of teaching but I do have 2 Masters degrees under my belt, which I feel is holding me back. I get nearly the same responses and input from schools and have been to at least 10 different interviews this year. It wasn't any more or less easier than last year (before the pandemic).
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06-22-2020, 10:58 PM
