Hard work is paying off! Job Offer Received!

After nearly 4 months of looking and applying to everything I could find, I finally got a job offer. It is in the IT Security realm, working for a DoD contractor, doing exactly what I want to be doing. The actual job title is Software Design Engineer II, which is sorta in the ballpark of what I will be doing. I will also be getting a security clearance out of the deal, not sure what level yet. The truly amazing part to me is that this wasn't even a job that I applied for! The internal recruiter contacted me after finding my resume on Dice, but I have been checking out the company and it all seems legit.

I don't have the written offer yet, so it is still a little hard to believe. However, there is one thing I would like to get some advice on: relocation assistance. They said that they will pay for my relocation, but since this is the first time in my adult life I have ever had to move farther than across town (this move will be about 900 miles), I have no idea the expenses that I should be expecting. For those of you that have gone through this, how does relocation assistance work? Do they just mail you a check? How much is a reasonable amount to be expecting? Is there anything else I should be asking?

Find more posts tagged with

Free for TechExams community: Cybersecurity salary guide

Compare cert salaries and plan your next career move

Button

Comments

lantech

Let me be the first to congratulate you on your new job.

Don't know about relocation expenses or pay. Maybe someone else can chime in on that one.

the_Grinch

Congrats! Usually there is a set amount that they allow you to have. The only company that offered it to me, said the number was $5000 which I thought was very reasonable.

Everyone

First of all, Congrats!

As far as the relocation assistance is concerned... a lot of companies have a moving company that they use. If you use their movers, their movers will bill the company directly (you get a copy of the bill). They usually cover up to a certain amount. If you chose to either move yourself, or us a different company, it will be a reimbursement.

They may tell you "up to" a certain amount, which means you only get what you actually need/use. If you go over that amount, you'll be responsible for paying anything over it. Although I've gone just slightly over before, and the company went ahead and covered it even though it was a little over their stated max.

The biggest thing is find a new place ASAP. You have a limited amount of time from when your stuff is picked up to when it needs to be delivered. If it isn't delivered before the deadline, the movers have to put it in storage, and the storage can get expensive. The storage will often either put you over you relocation allowance or not be covered. So its better for you if you can avoid storage and give the movers an address to deliver your household goods to that you will be moving into.

swild

I don't have a lot of stuff and will easily be able to fit it all in my SUV and the smallest U-Haul trailer, so I hope to move myself. If they will only pay if they use their movers, I will do that but it isn't my first choice. I think $5000 would be perfect to get me there and in a rental. I have been looking and there seems to be a whole lot of rentals within a 30 minute commute that are within budget. I actually found a perfect place that will be available Nov 1st. I just hope I can put off being there until then.

Hypntick

Congrats swild!

Now, to the matter at hand, 5k should be enough to move yourself with no issues. I personally am looking at an upcoming move myself and am budgeting around 5.5k. However this is a full apartment, 2 vehicles, and a few other considerations. So if you're able to pack it all up in a small trailer, you'll probably come out a good bit less I would think. Good luck on the move, hope it goes well for you.

MrAgent

Congrats! Where are you moving to?

kgb

Congrats on the job!

Exciting times ahead man.

Always nice to hear about people working hard and having success.

While I've never personally dealt with relocation assistance, I've worked for companies that offered it. It really comes down to their policy on it. Some companies purchase your house, some offer free rental for a limited time,etc. It's a very wide spectrum.

So, once you get the written offer and accept, that's when I'd start asking them for their policy on it.

inscom.brigade

Great good news is awlays welcome! keep in touch!

halaakajan

Congratulations Sir! This job will be more on Software Development and Design?

Everyone

IIRC the last time I moved... moved a 3 bedroom 1200 sq ft house, wife + 2 kids at the time, 1200sq ft basement, and 2.5 car garage... cost around $8k. That was a 1500 mile move.

SteveLord

Wow...I am amazed at some of the costs here.

I moved a 2 bedroom apartment with 2 kids across 1100 miles. Penske 16' truck + trailer to tow car + gas for our 2nd car + 2 hotel stays. I would say it cost me around $2k. Half of which was the truck. And this was when gas was between $3 and $4 in the US.

gunbunnysoulja

Also surprised at some of the costs... Assuming others had movers, whereas I moved myself.

My wife and I also used Penske (26') from MA to FL and total cost was $2000 for truck, gas, wife driving her car, food, tolls and hotel.

You can negotiate like crazy for the rental truck (well, I did anyways). It was originally suppose to be $1800 for a week. Talked it down to $1200.

Death Dream

Congratz on the new job once it is set in stone! No idea what the cost would be. I've only had to move 40 miles which isn't much at all.

Akaricloud

It really depends on how much stuff you have and if you plan to hire a company to do it or not. If you move yourself it can be quite cheap. Everyone that I've seen get a relocation package just got paid out via check. In all honesty a SUV and trailer full moved yourself will likely only end up costing you a few hundred dollars.

As far as housing, be prepared to pay first, last and deposit up front assuming you'll be renting.

Don't forget that relocation packages can be negotiated as well!

jamesp1983

Congrats and good luck with the move!

Hypntick

Ah, yeah included in my move costs are the cost of the housing, utilities, etc. etc. If I only had to factor in transport of the items and gas, $1500 easy.

swild

MrAgent wrote: »

Congrats! Where are you moving to?

Charleston, SC. Totally wasn't even a city I was considering, but from my research, it seems like it will be an improvement over Little Rock.

halaakajan wrote: »

Congratulations Sir! This job will be more on Software Development and Design?

It's essentially top to bottom system hardening, so I guess it would fall under the software development purview. They said that the majority of the work would revolve around Java, SQL, Linux, and Windows but will also involve network security and "secure communications". I was told that it will require a lot of thinking outside the box, which is exactly what I want.

MAC_Addy

Nice one, mate! You've definitely put a lot of work in over the past year or two (not sure how long as I started following your thread not so long ago) with all the school stuff you've been doing.

My company usually offers $5000 for relocation, that usually covers everything. I think you'll be safe asking for that much.

TLeTourneau

Congrats on the job! As for the move it depends on the company. My company gives you the choice of being moved by a choice of five different moving companies including boxing and un-boxing plus 2K for incidental expenses or moving yourself and getting a larger direct payment. I went with the first option.

Krones

Frackin' Awesome sir. Huge congratulations. Funny how it worked out with the recruiter contacting you! I am very happy for you.

Ivanjam

Awesome, swild - good luck on the move!

Legacy User

Congrats buddy! What ever happened to that last job the contract one that had do with networking?

Drovor

Congrats swild! Glad to see your hard work paying off.

instant000

1. Congrats on the job offer.
2. Congrats on the clearance (when you get it). That makes you more marketable.
3. Yeah, the contractors usually are urgent to get workers in, as they have slots to fill, and if they don't fill in a timely fashion, they're not necessarily meeting their terms of the deal they made.
4. You said Dice. I remember reading the job forums on there, and there are a couple poster's there .. quite some characters, "hoapres" comes immediately to mind
5. Once you get the written offer in hand, then start making arrangements.
6. Relocation: looks like you have plenty of advice here.
7. Other questions you should ask:
a. What are the dates for this contract?
b. What arrangements are in place for when the contract ends?
c. What is the cost of turning off and re-establishing housing/utilities for both locations?

Iristheangel

Congratulations, swild. You deserve the best.

swild

instant000 wrote: »

3. Yeah, the contractors usually are urgent to get workers in, as they have slots to fill, and if they don't fill in a timely fashion, they're not necessarily meeting their terms of the deal they made.
4. You said Dice. I remember reading the job forums on there, and there are a couple poster's there .. quite some characters, "hoapres" comes immediately to mind
7. Other questions you should ask:
a. What are the dates for this contract?
b. What arrangements are in place for when the contract ends?
c. What is the cost of turning off and re-establishing housing/utilities for both locations?

They said that they were wanting to fill this position quickly, but it has been a month since we started the interview process. It seems like they have a lot going on. After it had been a week since I talked to my recruiter, I emailed the hiring manager to make sure I didn't slip through the cracks or that the recruiter was fired/sick/whatever. I then got a call the next day from a different recruiter telling me that they wanted to offer me the job and making sure that the salary was acceptable. Now waiting for the written offer and it seems like it is taking forever even though it has only been 3 business days.

They are a government contractor, and they are hiring me for a specific contract, but I will be a permanent employee of the company. Once this contact is over I will be moved to a different project, even though that is not in the foreseeable future, according to the recruiter. This location currently has more than 50 openings, so I guess they are just expanding more quickly than the staff can keep up with.

In other news, the transmission just went out on my car. Kinda glad that it didn't happen while towing all of my possessions across country, but it is quite the unforeseen expense since my car only has 38,000 miles on it. Everything has to happen at once.

swild

Written "contingent" offer received. Contingent upon my receiving top secret clearance and the company receiving the government contract. I can get an interim clearance in as little as 2 weeks, but it may take quite a while for the full clearance. After reading a few FAQs about clearances, it looks like a interim Secret clearance can be granted in as little as 2 weeks, but an interim Top Secret can take 2 to 3 months longer. It also says that COMSEC requires at minimum an interim TS for access to information at the Secret level. Lots of new questions now.

Has anyone on here gone from no clearance to Top Secret? How long did it take before you could get started?

The one thing that really concerns me is what if I move and then they don't get the contract? That's a pretty scary possibility. There is someone on a different forum who that exact thing happened to and he was just kinda stranded.

Hypntick

Can't speak to clearances, however I would at the very least start looking for other opportunities just to have a backup plan. Couldn't hurt because you never know what may happen.

Bokeh

Course its been a long while since I had a clearance, but it initially took 6 months to go from secret to Top Secret/SCI. Depends on what they find in the background check and how long the backlog is for those requesting clearance. It does seem once you have it, it is easier and quicker to get it renewed each time you come up for it.

instant000

swild wrote: »

Written "contingent" offer received. Contingent upon my receiving top secret clearance and the company receiving the government contract. I can get an interim clearance in as little as 2 weeks, but it may take quite a while for the full clearance. After reading a few FAQs about clearances, it looks like a interim Secret clearance can be granted in as little as 2 weeks, but an interim Top Secret can take 2 to 3 months longer. It also says that COMSEC requires at minimum an interim TS for access to information at the Secret level. Lots of new questions now.

Has anyone on here gone from no clearance to Top Secret? How long did it take before you could get started?

The one thing that really concerns me is what if I move and then they don't get the contract? That's a pretty scary possibility. There is someone on a different forum who that exact thing happened to and he was just kinda stranded.

1. Actually, don't worry about the clearance that much. This much is key, if you have any concerns:
- felonies (robbed any banks lately?)
- financial management issues (is this person cash-strapped, and thus vulnerable to sell secrets to the enemy?)
- foreign national contact (are you sleeping with the enemy?)
- loyalty (has this person worked in the past for organizations that tried to overthrow the government?)
- honesty (has this person divulged everything, or held something back, which makes it look like they're trying to hide something?)
- personal (they're going to ask you some personal questions, that a normal job could not legally ask you, be ready for this)

So, as long as those aren't an issue, the clearance won't be an issue.

2. What is an issue is when would they start paying you? If they're going to start paying you, then it's OK to move, LOL. If not, then it's not OK.

3. Also, getting the clearance makes you a hotter commodity. If you can get the clearance, whether or not the job goes through, you'll be VERY marketable.

4. Make sure to PM me as soon as you get your ".mil" address. Just to say hi .

Hope this helps.