I applied through the company website and was emailed back the same day. I came in for an interview one or two days later. It was a 1:1 interview with the CEO; he was very easy going and fun to speak with. We talked about my experience, career goals, we toured the lab areas, and I was given a skills test. Mostly serial dilution problems and writing down the steps to run a PCR. He said he wanted to move quickly since somebody was leaving that week.
Seven weeks go by and I finally get a call back. Mind you, I had checked in 2 or 3 times to see where they were in the decision-making process. The answer each time was that "they will have a decision by the end of next week". So after 7 weeks I get a verbal job offer and am asked to come in to do paper work. I came in the next day and no paper work was done, we chatted, he explained that there was drama between people in the lab and didn't want to add a new employee to the mix until things settled. Otherwise, he would have brought me on right away.
He told me the offer would be $45,000 including all benefits (so the take-home pay would be much less). To give you an idea, my previous job was worth ~$60K and I took home $39K before taxes. I told him I would think about it over the weekend and call back on Monday with an answer.
Monday I called and said yes to the offer. He said he still needed to contact my references and write up the offer. Why he didn't contact my references within the previous 7 weeks is beyond me. Another week goes by as we wait for responses from 3 references. I was finally sent a written offer. It was lower than what we spoke about in person and included no vacation days the first year (which was not in the original job posting). Naturally, I pointed out the offer was lower than what I expected because of our conversation the week before, and I also negotiated for a week vacation.
I did not hear back for four days. Meanwhile, I am emailing and calling during this time, unable to get ahold of the CEO. When I finally get him on the phone, he explains why they can only offer what was in the written agreement. He says that he thought I didn't want the job since I tried to negotiate for vacation days. I said I would still accept the offer, I just wanted to come to agree on the best deal for both of us. It is weird to me that he thought negotiation meant disinterest. I suppose to reassure me, he said I had very good references, which is why I got the offer.
With the information that I still wanted the job, he said he would talk with his newly hired lab manager and get back to me monday afternoon. He didn't call. I emailed him and called the office to try to get a hold of him without success. He finally emailed me back monday evening to say my offer is off the table because they can't offer me a week vacation.
I already told him that I would accept the offer as-is, so something doesn't add up here.
I find out that the job I was offered, was re-posted one day after I was given the written offer. Yet, he could not contact me about the offer at all for four days. And didn't say it was rescinded until a week after the initial offer.
Initially, I was very excited about this opportunity. I was very cool research, a laid-back atmosphere, and seemly a tight-knit group to work with.
Seeing how much poor communication there was on his end, and even with his office professional, made me wonder what it would really be like to work there. Regardless, I was still excited about the nature of the research, so I looked passed it. The constant excuses and deceit really turned me off and am glad not to be working under someone with such little professionalism and integrity.
My job offer was rescinded and it turned out to be a negative experience, but that's not to say this job isn't right for someone. I will just say BUYER BEWARE. I was strung along for more than two months. Made to believe first, that it would be a quick process and second, that my job offer with a start date would stand.
