NYC Interview

the_Grinch

Got an interview with a company in NYC for a desktop support position. Pay is decent and the company is worldwide so I think it will be a great opportunity. A two hour trip for me though....

BigTex71

It better pay good... the cost of living in/near NYC is outrageous.

Good luck with your interview.

the_Grinch

Thanks and yeah they are looking to pay between $40 to $45k. I should be alright with that and it just so happens that I have a friend who is thinking of moving (he's currently in NYC) and would take on a roommate!

jryantech

Dude awesome!

Good luck on the interview.

BradleyHU

BigTex71 wrote: »

It better pay good... the cost of living in/near NYC is outrageous.

Good luck with your interview.

depends where you're tryin to live....manhattan is expensive...but queens, brooklyn, bronx & staten island, you can find a decent place for decent money...

and since dude is gonna have a roommate, ya'll are good then...its definitely cheaper if you have a roomie.

oh yeah, good luck...i'm lookin for a DST job too, i've been puttin out my résumé to various companies here...had a few interviews and what not, but nothin has come out of it yet...i'ma keep tryin....

the_Grinch

So I drove two hours for a 10 minute prelim interview that could have been done over the phone (he asked on the phone how far I was). Got the normal line..."we have a couple more interviews, but will call you at the end of the next week to let you know if you made it to the second round."

Stotic

I work and live here...if you get the job and need some advice on living here don't hesitate to pm me.

BradleyHU

the_Grinch wrote: »

So I drove two hours for a 10 minute prelim interview that could have been done over the phone (he asked on the phone how far I was). Got the normal line..."we have a couple more interviews, but will call you at the end of the next week to let you know if you made it to the second round."

damn man, thats the worst...ionno why they didnt do a phone interview. wait 2 hrs??? either you live upstate, way out in LI, or you're in jersey, or ct...

but yo, i do wish you the best of luck man, i hope you get that second interview.

I got one scheduled for next friday...my first interview since mid January....

the_Grinch

Yeah we shall see, I'm in talks with a government contracting company as well. Yup in Jersey and good luck with your interview!

undomiel

I ran into that once over here. I got brought in for an interview for a sys admin position on the other side of the city. I went in and they fire off a few questions about what does ping do, what does nslookup do and so forth. Then they thank me and show me the door. It could have been just as easily done over the phone or even in an e-mail. As soon as I got home I wrote a pretty scathing e-mail about their hiring practices and how they don't value people's time. The response I got was that I had failed their personality test. I've noticed that even now which is over 6 months since that interview that they are still looking to fill the position.

the_Grinch

LOL you have my respect for being willing and able to send an e-mail such as that. Normally, I would send an e-mail saying thanks for the interview, but in this case I did not.

undomiel

I can normally take a lot but something about the uselessness of that interview set me off. I've been insulted a number of times on interviews from the amount of money I've requested to insinuating I've lied on my resume. They still got thank you notes because at least I didn't feel like they were wasting my time on purpose. It all goes back to the saying of time being money.

WillTech105

Like I said in a similar thread, the city is cut-throat and very competitive in any field (not just IT). I was looking for a position for about 7 months before I finally found one after countless interviews.

I don't know about you guys but I hated when I got called in for "interviews" by recruiters and they weren't even technical. They just wanted to make sure that you were a real person to send to their client so THEIR reputation wouldn't be tarnished. Usually it would be a quick 10,15min chat and thats it. After about 4,5 months I refused to go to recruiter interviews and I stated that I have a tight schedule and I would only go in if it was to the actual company to be interviewed and I would press for a phone "interview" with the recruiter. Sometimes it backfired on me but I got tired of pointless talks we could do over the phone.

What I found though is to fully meet and exceed the expectations of the employer by asking what they are looking for in a candidate and you come back pointing out how you CAN do what they ask (even better if you can point it out in your resume experience) and show them you are motivated and want to learn. I think thats what sold me to my current employer.

skrpune

here's my take: interviewing is a harrowing process for folks on both sides of the resume. Yes, our time as job seekers is valuable, but same goes for the person who's doing the interviewing. When there are a large number of viable candidates to be whittled down, they will often start with phone interviews. But lots of places prefer to do in person interviews to get a better feel of who it is that they are talking too - there are things you can fudge over the phone but not so much face to face, like body language & being personable. I'm not trying to take jabs at anyone here, so please don't take this the wrong way undomiel, but if you "failed their personality test" then that's they're nice way of saying they didn't like you without having you sue them for it. We live in very litigious times, and if a potential employers says the wrong thing, they can get sued for it. (Even if they have totally screwed up and discriminatory reasons for saying no, they need to come up with some tangible, non-litigious reason to say no, and in that particular case it seems they picked "personality test.") Maybe that company was one of those that just prefers to meet folks in person to get their "vibe" and maybe they just didn't feel the right vibe they were looking for and didn't want to waste any more of your or their valuable time.

In general, many companies are very bad at the hiring process and couldn't properly interview their way out of a paper bag. But pointing out to them how much they suck in a nonconstructive way doesn't do much for anyone. I'd say that if you have a problem with the interview/hiring process at a certain company, then you have a couple professional choices you can make:
- if you have nothing nice to say, say nothing at all. Don't send that thank you note and just leave it at that.
- send a simple email saying thanks for their time and wish them luck with their hiring/candidate selection process. (You can leave out the part about how they NEED luck since they suck at interviews! )
- contact someone in HR to constructively give them some feedback and communicate that you were expecting a more indepth interview and perhaps with future candidates they may prefer to do these types of short screenings over the phone rather than in person, as it may same valuable time for both the interviewers and interviewees. This is hard to do, as many people don't take any criticism (constructive or not) very well, so proceed with caution if you choose this option.

I'm a pretty firm believer in not burning your bridges, even new ones with folks you're interviewing with. What happens if that person you just sent that scathing email to ends up switching companies and you interview with them at a different company in the future? Maybe you made such a negative impression on them that you've lost out on future opportunities. Plus, even if the person who interviewed you was a total boob and had no idea how to interview properly, that may not be the best indicator of your chances with the company of whether you want to work with other folks there.

Just my two cents. Again, I'm not trying to make any comments about anyone's employability or demeanor here, just trying to bring in a different viewpoint and express my opinion on this, so please don't take this as an insult - just my humble opinion.

Kasor

Any luck on getting the job...? Still nothing yet..

the_Grinch

Should find out if I made it to the second round at the end of this week...

skrpune

the_Grinch wrote: »

Should find out if I made it to the second round at the end of this week...

Good luck, hope you get some good news this week

SRTMCSE

I've had similar experiences when interviewing for my current position in nyc. At the time I too was 2 hours away but they did not know this. I was living outside of Philly but had immediate plans to move in w/ my family when/if I got a job, which is what I ended up doing, so as far as they were concerned, I lived right over in Queens and commuted to PA. Sucked for interviews but got me a lot more than I was b/c most places don't believe that you will move if offerred the position and don't like hiring commuters.

Good luck though, it's tough getting a job out here, even tougher now than it was when I started this job (coincidentally, 1 year today)

BigLou

the_Grinch wrote: »

Thanks and yeah they are looking to pay between $40 to $45k.

Are you sure it is a desktop support position? Because that salary they are offering you is more in range of what a helpdesk support tech would earn in NYC.

Make sure you understand the position and its requirements. If its soley a desktop position, and they make you an offer, you may want to negotiate that salary. You should/could make a lot more than 40-45K especially if you have experience.... A LOT MORE.

Do research on the average salaries of what DT techs are making in NYC so you are informed and you dont come off looking greedy. You just want a fair offer. IMHO, without knowing all the requirements of the position, that is a real low ball offer.

JMO

loxleynew

My understanding is that most companies like to do in person interviews to see if they mesh personalities well with the interviewee. Not to take this the wrong way, but a lot of IT people just don't have personalities. Everyone here should know what I mean by that. For some companies, that is fine and the person they are looking for. For others it is not.

How did the job go? You get it?

the_Grinch

Nope don't believe I did as I didn't get another call. Also, didn't get the contracting job either (I saw that coming). So now with very little money in the bank account I continue the search. Might have to take a simple part-time job (if I can find one) so I have some money coming in. At least I can look at my degree.......

BradleyHU

BigLou wrote: »

Are you sure it is a desktop support position? Because that salary they are offering you is more in range of what a helpdesk support tech would earn in NYC.

Make sure you understand the position and its requirements. If its soley a desktop position, and they make you an offer, you may want to negotiate that salary. You should/could make a lot more than 40-45K especially if you have experience.... A LOT MORE.

Do research on the average salaries of what DT techs are making in NYC so you are informed and you dont come off looking greedy. You just want a fair offer. IMHO, without knowing all the requirements of the position, that is a real low ball offer.

JMO

entry level DST is 40-45....****, last year, one company called me and was tryin to get me to come in for an interview and they said the pay is between $15-17/hr....i said NO with the quickness...first off, i was sleeping when dude called me, and second, thats a HUGE paycut. i did the math real quick in my head, thats barely even $35k. every other job i've gone for and had an interview was in the 40s, so why settle for something thats gonna pay less when everyone else is offering more...

BigLou

BradleyHU wrote: »

entry level DST is 40-45....****, last year, one company called me and was tryin to get me to come in for an interview and they said the pay is between $15-17/hr....i said NO with the quickness...first off, i was sleeping when dude called me, and second, thats a HUGE paycut. i did the math real quick in my head, thats barely even $35k. every other job i've gone for and had an interview was in the 40s, so why settle for something thats gonna pay less when everyone else is offering more...

That's very surprising. All the DT openings I've come across in NYC start their offer at 55K, minimum, even if you dont have experience and are elevating from a help desk role. I know the DT techs at my company are making in the 60k range.

If I was offered 40-45k for a DT role I'd laugh in their face.

loxleynew

BigLou wrote: »

That's very surprising. All the DT openings I've come across in NYC start their offer at 55K, minimum, even if you dont have experience and are elevating from a help desk role. I know the DT techs at my company are making in the 60k range.

If I was offered 40-45k for a DT role I'd laugh in their face.

Does NYC just pay a ton more than everywhere else? Here in Colorado 35-40k for a DST position is a lot.. Well average I would say and definatley something not to laugh at lol. Is the cost of living there just ridiculously high or something?

undomiel

loxleynew wrote: »

Is the cost of living there just ridiculously high or something?

Correct.

BigLou

loxleynew wrote: »

Does NYC just pay a ton more than everywhere else? Here in Colorado 35-40k for a DST position is a lot.. Well average I would say and definatley something not to laugh at lol. Is the cost of living there just ridiculously high or something?

Yes, it's the cost of living. It's very high in NY so the jobs here have to pay more. My friend lives in Tampa and he said with 45K a year I could buy a house, in NYC with that you'll barely be able to afford a nice apartment. And if you also want a car you'll be scraping by every month and watching every penny you spend.

Train fares are going up to $2.50 in NYC soon. Things are getting out of hand.

BradleyHU

loxleynew wrote: »

Does NYC just pay a ton more than everywhere else? Here in Colorado 35-40k for a DST position is a lot.. Well average I would say and definatley something not to laugh at lol. Is the cost of living there just ridiculously high or something?

i wouldnt say ridiculously high, but it is rather pricey to live here. i mean, it all depends on where you're living, and what type of place you're looking for. Manhattan is just OD expensive....no matter if you're in Washington Heights, Harlem, LES, Upper East Side, Chelsea....its just the levels of expensiveness vary depending on the neighborhood. if you live in the other boros, depending on what & where you're looking for, you can find some steals...also a good amount of pplz commute in from Jersey & CT too...

BigLou wrote: »

Yes, it's the cost of living. It's very high in NY so the jobs here have to pay more. My friend lives in Tampa and he said with 45K a year I could buy a house, in NYC with that you'll barely be able to afford a nice apartment. And if you also want a car you'll be scraping by every month and watching every penny you spend.

Train fares are going up to $2.50 in NYC soon. Things are getting out of hand.

yo, the MTA is out of their mind raising the fare. man, i remember when you could pay 1.25 to get on the train, thats when we had tokens and the paper student train passes...ah i remember the good old days(mid to late 90s)...i havent bought a non-unlimited-monthly metrocard in god knows how long, and the fact that their talkin about raising the 30-day to $103, is ridiculous. i remember when it used to cost $63...and that was like 6 years ago....

BigLou

BradleyHU wrote: »

yo, the MTA is out of their mind raising the fare. man, i remember when you could pay 1.25 to get on the train, thats when we had tokens and the paper student train passes...ah i remember the good old days(mid to late 90s)...i havent bought a non-unlimited-monthly metrocard in god knows how long, and the fact that their talkin about raising the 30-day to $103, is ridiculous. i remember when it used to cost $63...and that was like 6 years ago....

Yep and what do we get in return? Over crowded trains that are hardly ever on schedule.

skrpune

BradleyHU wrote: »

yo, the MTA is out of their mind raising the fare. man, i remember when you could pay 1.25 to get on the train, thats when we had tokens and the paper student train passes...ah i remember the good old days(mid to late 90s)...i havent bought a non-unlimited-monthly metrocard in god knows how long, and the fact that their talkin about raising the 30-day to $103, is ridiculous. i remember when it used to cost $63...and that was like 6 years ago....

Wow, that takes me back - I remember getting my monthly paper bus/train passes in high school, all color coded by month. And I remember trying to be all slick when I forgot or lost my pass and trying to use similarly-colored previous month's passes. Sometimes it worked, and sometimes I was left scrounging for a few quarters!

I have to admit that a 100% increase in fares over the last ~10 years is a bit steep, but I can't say that I'm shocked that the fair is getting increased to $2.50. The city's economy isn't in that great shape right now, to say the least, so I'm sure they're trying to make up whatever money they can to fill the gaps. But spending ~$100 per month for unlimited public transit access is sounding pretty good when you think about the alternative of driving wherever you're going - traffic, gas, parking...EEEK!

However, they need to be careful on the cutting back of service...NYC can't exactly stay the ever-awake city if train service gets cut off after a certain time or if people can't get to where they're going because the trains are too crowded.