WOMEN AGES 50+ FOR DECEMBER 2021

A year ago, I put together my 4 page CV and my 8-10 page application addressing the Selection Criteria for a job in my current department. These application packages are like doing a research paper! They take hours and hours to complete.

In February, I was shortlisted and offered an interview. More hours and hours of preparation. At that time, one of the managers in the office took me under her wing and gave me a lot of support and advice. In March, I had the interview. At the end of April, the other person interviewed got the job. That job was a big jump for me and he has more technical skills than I do.

I still had my current job, so I wasn't going to start applying for another job until early 2022. But then in September a couple things happened: I was "headhunted" through LinkedIn, and a work colleague strongly suggested I apply for a job that had just come up in another department. She thought I'd be perfect for it. At the same time, 5 other jobs in my area of expertise were advertised!!

So I applied for all 7 of them. There were a lot of late nights in September/October!! Thankfully my mentor (the manager) and my work colleague (a friend) helped me with some of the applications, making suggestions and refining wording a bit. And then I waited. Nothing moves fast in the world of job applications.

By early December I had been turned down by 3 jobs, and I had been shortlisted and attended 4 interviews. I figure that's a pretty good rate of return. But each interview requires lots of prep -- each one is like studying for an exam. And each interview involved a 3-person panel -- it's a popular way to do interviews here.

For one interview, I was given a package of information about a week in advance. I had to learn it and then in the interview, I had to teach it to the panel. I actually really enjoyed that interview. I had a blast teaching! My Bachelor's Degree is in education/teaching so I have been trained for that, I just haven't used it in a while.

The "We're sorry. All the applicants were excellent, but unfortunately for you, one was more excellent than you" emails started trickling in.

One of the things with an interview is that it is a two-way street. The panel is checking out the applicant but the applicant is also checking out the job. In order to do that, applicants are encouraged to ask questions at the end of the interview. This is something my mentor has been working with me on.

When I went to the first interview, I already knew quite a bit about the job, and there were a few things I felt hesitant about. By the end of the interview, I found myself trying to convince myself that it could be a good job ... not a good sign! When they turned me down, I was relieved!

The next one which turned me down was the teaching one. It was a 6-month, fixed-term position and I was thinking I might arrange to be seconded over there for the 6 months and then return to where I am. I think I might have liked that one for 6 months, but I don't know if I would have liked it for longer. However, secondment is a lot of paperwork and I suspect they may have gone for someone who didn't need to go through all that.

I haven't heard from the last interview yet and won't until later in January. But it was an odd interview, and by about halfway through I got the impression they weren't entirely sure what they were looking for ... and I felt like I was interviewing them!

But I heard from one ... she left a message to call her and I thought that didn't sound like a "We're sorry" message. And yes ... I got the job!!