To think i am wasting my time even turning up for this interview :(

[doggiemumma]

Bloody hell! I have been selected for an interview - i put in what i thought was a strong application for a job that whilst i have no direct experience my background should be sufficient, and hey, i got an interview!

Turns out there is an internal applicant - it says so on the interview timetable

This is for a temporary job (10 months) for a science technician in the school - I get the feeling this is a box ticking exercise.

Have put two days to one side (today and tomorrow) to prepare and am poring through health and safety stuff etc , just got the email

Im wasting my time aren't i? :(

No job interview is a waste of time. You learn more every time and your will be glad of the experience when you go for that job that you really want.

Batman I've been in the same boat. I was the internal applicant and found it so hard to bullshit talk myself up as they already knew what I did and didn't do! I also probably didn't answer questions fully as assumed that because they knew about my experience they didn't need to hear it again. But they did!

Thanks for all of the encouragement. I am not that confident because i have no direct experience and this guy has obviously been doing the job. Will just have to wait and see - i definately need the interview technique though as i am crap and just come over as a blithering twat. Maybe as i sort of know this one is a no no i wont be nervous. Ive been looking for a job for two years now :(

In our school we always hire the best person for the job, internal or external. It has happened on many occasions that the person already doing the job hasn't got it.

I just hope its not a "competency based" crock of shit interview. Its an independant school so they may have their own set of rules and criteria.

Good luck. I hope you either get it, or come back from the interview having had a useful learning experience.

definitely go for it i havent worked for 8 years due to being a carer for my ex husband we have split and im now back on the job market at 55 yrs old, well they are building a new complex where i live and tgi fridays are employing and being as i was in catering before (chef) i applied thinking not a snowballs chance in hell, went for the interview and got the job starting in august well chuffed and amazed dosent cover it

On a side note - from what I'm reading they've sent you a list if who's being interviewed including their names?!!?!

Yes Wips - i was a bit about that too!

Well done issey6cats, thats brilliant news :)

Oh no, go for it. My school advertised for a teacher last year, and chose and external candidate over an internal one (where a teacher had been working there for a few years on temp contracts). Both are there now.

Best of luck, I was selected over an internal candidate on my last job (head of department).

If by chance you dont get it the interview practise may really help you for next time. I went for a long shot job a month ago, didnt get it, but made a few mistakes that were easy wins for the next job which I got. I was so glad I made the mistakes on a job that I didnt stand much chance of getting anyway, and not on the job I stood a good chance of getting (and in fact got).

I know someone at my old work who was temping, and an external candidate got the job over them even though they were actually doing it. They have to be fair.

If your better than him you should get it. You don't know what he is like he may be a work shy wastrel!

Good luck.

That (the list of names) is really shocking

Good luck!!

There was an internal applicant for my current job. Not only was she internal, but she'd been acting up in the position for over six months! Had I known this before the interview, I might not have bothered as I'd have jumped to the conclusion that she had it in the bag. I'm glad I made the effort.

In my current job, I do a lot of recruitment. In cases where I have already decided that there is an internal candidate who I want in the vacant position, I have ringfenced the recruitment to internal candidates only. On the occasions when I have recruited externally, all candidates have had an equal chance of getting the job. Sometimes the internal candidate has been successful, more often it is the external candidate that gets recruited.

It is a myth that organisations have to advertise all vacant posts, and I wouldn't want to waste my time on a pointless interview exercise. I would say that if they're taking the time to interview you properly, then they're interested in seeing if you'd be right for the role.

Good luck! :)

Just wanted to say good luck to you dm - you sound nice and I hope you get the job. You are right to spend some time preparing for it; I just missed out on a job I really wanted because I was underprepared at the interview.

So go for it and Good Luck.

Thanks George, thats very kind of you :) I am lucky that a friend of mine works in the same role (different school) and he sent me some websites so i can research, so at least i will have some idea about the general procedures etc. I'll be buggered if its competency based though - i just find it really hard to answer those type of questions "tell us about a time you worked well in a team" "tell us about a time you motivated others" I always bumble and blather - Then of course when i step out its like "d'oh why didnt i say xyz" I find it really difficult to talk about a specific time. One of the questions i got asked at an interview was "tell us what you would do if you got a racist email sent by one of your collegues" i was and a bit at their lazy interviewing. And when you get them asking questions from a list it just really gets my goat - yes i know its fair because everyone gets the same questions but everyone is different and if interviewers were better at it, they would be able to guage where a candidates strengths and weaknesses lie.

Have got to the cest la vie stage now though, I always prepare but often prepare the wrong stuff.

will post more after I've put kids to bed, but I'm a school science tech with a PhD too! got my job in november last year so might be able to remember some sensible questions too

DM - those are the kind of questions I got in the interview for the job I didn't get! so it is really worthwhile you putting in some time to think of some good answers in advance.

thanks becky, id really appreciate that :) how are you finding it? i was a bit at first but have been looking at the CLEAPSS website and the nuffield stuff and it actually looks like a lot of fun. I am hoping that this temp job will either lead me to more tech work or maybe even a gtp. (but im still undecided about teaching at the moment) Oh, i WANT this job

I'm in my second tech job now, and had a 7 year gap between them to have dd3 and ds. Being a school science technician is a lot like being a Mum - you spend most of your time clearing up other people's mess and making sure they've got everything they need for the next lesson / day. Combine that with plenty of washing up, occasional cooking, bit of fixing stuff and you're most of the way there. Biggest skills needed are the ability to prioritise and manage your time effectively. Also need to be able to stand your ground when presented with unreasonable last minute requests. Being part mind reader helps too as teachers don't always give too much away with their equipment requests.

Both times at interview I've been asked how I'd deal with a last minute request for equipment. Answer is that it depends on how busy I was and whether giving out the equipment would impact on another class later on, but if possible I'd give them what they needed, perhaps only one set as a demo though.

Also need to be able to guess a bit - e.g. if they've asked for bunsens, tripods, gauzes etc they rarely remember to ask for splints and matches, but it's a pretty good bet they'll be needed too, so I always put them out on the trolley. So it's really helpful to understand what the equipment is being used for and what the point of the practical is, as then you can send out what's needed rather than just what's asked for.

Being flexible about hours you can work can be helpful too, e.g. for open days, extra training, assessed practical times etc you might need to work extra or different hours. Knowing that you've got a plan for odd extra childcare if needed would be helpful. These situations are normally known about months in advance, so you'd have time to get something sorted.

There are courses technicians can go on either as beginners or specialist subject courses. I've also done first aid training which was a condition of employment for my current job.

I've also been asked at interview...

-how to make up a standard 1M solution
-how I'd deal with situation where I thought a pupil was being bullied
-whether I'd be willing to go into classroom to help with praticals
-whether I'd be happy to talk through practicals with staff members (we're a middle school and for the year 5 and 6 teachers they're not science specialists and sometimes need a bit of extra explanation)

sorry for epic post! happy to answer any more questions if you've got them :)

I really like my job (well most of the time anyway!). The pay isn't brilliant, but it's part time term time only and it's pretty easy for someone with my background (PhD in molecular biology). The only problem I have is fitting it all into the hours, some things are very much long term when I've got a minute jobs.

You need to be pretty resourceful and adaptable. School budgets are very tight so you quite often need to improvise things our source cheaper ways of doing things, but again that's a lot like running a household. Planning ahead and being organised is very important.

Forgot before - they also asked me if I'd be ok with the yuckier parts of the job - first job that meant dealing with maggots and leftovers after dissection (hearts and kidneys).

I've being toying with a GTP since dd1 was about 9 months old, she'd now 14! I figured I don't need the stress of teaching. Technician is a relatively easy job, very varied though and never dull :)

Thanks so much bumpy, good points about the bits the teachers will forget (or take for granted!) In fact it said on the CLEAPSS site that teachers must remember that techs aren't mind readers :) My friend says he knows a lot of moody techs (but hes a moody bugger anyway ) but maybe thats why!

Have you been asked to help come up with new practicals? My friend gets this - i personally think he sits in his lab making up concoctions all day :) I did my PhD with him and it was like an episode of big bang theory in our corridor

I am now having a blonde moment though - 1M solution is just molecular weight in grams/litre? isnt it? See, this is where i go wrong - lack of confidence in what i know to be right. Molarity is a bit of a bugbear for me for some reason (how i ever got a phd i'll never know! )

Would definately like to demo practicals though and maybe look for new experiments to do.

I used to be a vet nurse before i did my PhD i don't mind yucky!

How much different are the school experiments to lab stuff though - do they do any molecular biology? My phd in fruitfly genetics (hence my pants chemistry). Have done some molecular biology recently, and hope to actually do a pcr that works next week (fingers crossed) having scrounged the reagents for free (long story!)

Not necessarily. Public sector interviews are usually points based per answer. If you get the highest scores they have to give the job to you. Unless they fiddle the numbers later. I can see why this has pit you off but I reckon the best tactic would be to just concentrate on the answers you might give and forget that you found out about the internal candidate. Good luck.