The Secret Lives of Search Committees - Part 20: what happens after interviews

One thing I've often heard job-candidates wonder about--both in comments sections here and elsewhere--is what they should think if they have interviewed (either by Skype or on-campus) but haven't heard anything. The typical question is something like this: "Am I out of the running if I haven't heard anything after a few weeks?" In today's post, I'll try to shed some light on this issue. As readers will see, it's actually a pretty difficult question to answer, given contextual factors. On the flip side, my remarks may give some solace to job-marketeers, as unexpected things can and do happen.

Let me begin by addressing what happens after first-round interviews, which typically occur by Skype or phone. In my experience, committees usually hold first-round overviews over the course of a couple of weeks. Committees can interview anywhere from a handful of candidates to well over ten. While committees may briefly discuss candidate performance along the way, they usually wait until are interviews are complete to make decisions about who to invite to campus. While I get the impression that committees tend to want to "move quickly" after first-round interviews, deciding who to invite to campus soon after the first-round interviews wrap up (in some cases, the day or two after the last interview), notice that if you are one of the first people to interview that can be anywhere from two to three weeks after your interview. In other words, if all goes well on the committee's end of things, then depending on the order in which you were interviewed, if you are going to receive a campus invite it can take anywhere from a couple of days to several weeks after your interview to hear anything. So, if you don't hear anything quickly, don't panic - it could just be that you interviewed first and the process takes a few weeks.

Alas, this is if things go well on the committee's side of things. Sometimes it can take longer than a few weeks to hear anything--and in rare cases it can take months to hear anything. There are a few possible reasons for this. First, at some schools administrative things can take a bit: the committee has to forward names for on-campus interviews to administrators, who then need to approve everything. Second, in some cases one or more of the people the committee invites for an on-campus turns down the invite. This can be because the person already accepted a job elsewhere (and they didn't withdraw their application). In cases like this, the committee must not only wait to hear from the person; they also have decide what to do after the person turns down the invite. In some cases, this can involve simply extending an on-campus to the next person down on their list--or, if they are not sure who that is, it can take another committee meeting. All of this can take a few weeks. Finally--and this is the most rare possibility, though it does happen--the committee can actually have people out for flyouts and decide that they do not want to hire any of the people they flew out. In this case, the committee can actually choose to revisit the pool of candidates they had first-round interviews with, and choose to fly out another person or two. This can occur weeks or even months after the initial first-round interview. And indeed, it happened to me once. I had a first-round interview, a couple of months passed, I figured I didn't get a job...and then, voila, out of the blue I got a phone call for a campus invite!

To make a long story short, you shouldn't panic if you don't hear anything for a few weeks after a first-round interview. After that point, chances probably are that you will not get a campus invite...but anything can happen. Here, though, is one thing in my experience doesn't happen (that I think is worth adding). Sometimes candidates send emails to the committee after the first-round interview, either to simply thank them for the interview or, alternatively, because the candidate thinks the interview went badly and they want to convey to the committee that the interview was an aberration (I think I did this for one interview myself that I totally bombed). While I could of course be wrong, my general sense is that emails to the committee are unlikely to play any role whatsoever in the committee's deliberations. If you had a good interview, then while a thank-you note is a nice gesture, it's not likely to make a difference--whereas if you had a really bad interview, my sense is that, unfortunately, it's probably too little too late (especially if, as is usually the case, other equally qualified candidates had really good interviews). This is unfortunate, I know, especially given that I've never met anyone who hasn't bombed an interview or two (hence my general skepticism about the value of interviews). While I have known people (myself included) who surprisingly got campus invites despite "bombing" an interview, I would be very surprised if emailing the committee after the interview had anything to do with it (though one thing I should add here is this: not responding to committee emails in a timely fashion is a very bad thing to do--and you would be surprised how common it is!). 

Anyway, now let me turn to what occurs after campus visits. Administrative delays aside, my sense is that committees tend to want to move very quickly after campus-invites, in large part because they want to maximize their chances of getting their preferred hire (after all, committees recognize that the best candidates may get offers elsewhere). However, things can still take several weeks here, as if the committee flies out three or four candidates, they may do it over several weeks. Consequently, my sense is that job-offers typically happen anywhere from just a few days to a few weeks after one's campus visit. Once again, however, things are not always so straightforward. Sometimes it can take quite a bit longer to hear after a campus invite. The typical case where it takes a while, I think, goes like this: you are the committee's second or third choice after the on-campus, and they extend the job-offer to the person(s) in front of you--but, for one reason or another, the hire doesn't go through. This can happen for a few reasons. First, the person(s) who receive(s) the offer can turn it down flat. Second, they may ask for time to consider the offer (in part to put pressure on other departments they would prefer to work at to extend a counter-offer). Third, the candidate(s) may use counteroffer(s) to try to negotiate better terms of contract (at multiple schools, pitting them against each other!). All of this can take time, and if the candidate(s) ultimately refuse the offer then--after many weeks--the offer may be extended to you. While my sense is that this sort of thing happens less these days--given how rare jobs are in this market--it still happens from time to time. And while it may not feel very good to think you were the committee's second or third choice, at the end of the day a job offer is a job offer (and, for what it is worth, departments often have a very difficult time deciding between their top candidates).

So, long story short, what happens after first-round and on-campus interviews is complicated. Oftentimes, things move quickly--so it's not uncommon to hear from committees quickly. But oftentimes isn't all the time. Sometimes, it takes a while...so, while hope itself can be a torturous thing (and I think it is wise to not obsess over the market to the extent that one can control it), there is a very real sense in which, even if weeks or months go by, there is some hope you still might hear something positive.

But these are just my experiences on both sides of the market. What are yours?

Comments

[Amanda]

I am always puzzled by people asking about updates on certain jobs. Especially all the questions people ask about, "has so and so done first round interviews?" That makes me think candidates are thinking of every job they applied to, and wondering if they have an interview. That cannot be good for one's mental health. My assumption is always that I didn't get the interview, offer, etc. After all, the odds are overwhelmingly against me. When I do it is a happy surprise. I guess, though, making this assumption comes naturally to me. It might be hard to do on demand.

There is so much variation in time between interviews and offers it is hard to know much at all. I once was offered the job the same night as my flyout. Another time it took 3 months between first round and a campus invite. Usually the campus invites came 3-10 days after the interview. I had an on campus interview request that was put in my spam box. Thank goodness they went out of their way to contact me.

So basically, go into this with no expectations. And please be aware that:

1. Often there is a pecking order (especially with first rounds) so having a great interview is not all it takes to get to the next step. Sometimes you have little chance from the get-go.
2.The longer the amount of time between an interview and contact, the less likely you are one of the chosen few.
3. Schools do NOT always send a personal email after a skype or even an on-campus. This is rude af, but don't expect a rejection email. Silence is its own rejection.

Marcus what do you think about candidates asking for feedback? This is suggested sometimes. I tend to think it is awkward and not likely to result in good information. The search committee is likely to give a safe, bs answer.

[RJM]

On asking for feedback: I generally do this after on campus interviews, with varying degrees of success. I have got useful information in some cases, though not always. My general thought is that it can hardly hurt, so long as you do it politely, of course. The worst thing that can happen is that they say no.