Have I screwed up on interview by not saying this

[Lu978]

Overall I feel like it went fairly well and I wasn’t as nervous as I thought I would be. It was for an admin job in a school. The interviewer asked me if I was local and I said I love a 20 minute drive away. I forgot to mention that I know the area well as I used to live closer.

They also said they have other people to interview this week which says to me ‘you’re not the one’

aibu to be over thinking this?

20 minutes away isn't far. I'm not sure what difference knowing the area well makes. Do you mean that they would have been reassured that you wouldn't get delayed by going the wrong way?

None of this will be a factor in whether you get the job or not. Good luck

Saying they have other people to interview is only to give you an idea of the process and that it won't be an instant decision, no reflection on the interview itself.

I agree with op - 20 mins isn’t far away. Infact it might go in your favour you don’t live in the vicinity because there won’t be the over familiarity with the children because you live on pupil Xs street.

A 20 minute drive is still close enough and I still advise all candidates I interview of other interviews to align expectation of when they can expect contact either way just so they aren't sat there worrying if they haven't heard in a couple of days.

Schools typically offer the evening after interviews, ime. So it sounds like they are warning you that isnt going to be the case this time.
I don't see anything problematic in your answers. Just a case of wait and see.

I thought that as I’ve had an interview in a school before first thing in the morning and they called the same evening but this school have they said they have other people to see all this week. I’m the first person they’ve seen. I’m just overthinking as I really would like this job.

Try not to overthink, although I know that is easier said than done. When I got my current job I got a text from my (now) boss saying: “Can we talk tomorrow, I think I have some good news for you.” Think? Think?! I work with him now and I know that is his style of communication but it wasn’t helpful on the day!

Did they tell you when you can expect to hear? (So we can all keep our collective fingers and toes crossed for you).

Thank you. They have said by the end of the week And that I’ll be kept updated

Twenty minutes away shouldn't be a problem. Quite a few of the teachers at my school live 30+ minutes drive away. Teachers often like to not live in the same village/town as their school so that they're less likely to bump into little Johnny and his mum while you're in the wine aisle in Sainsbury's or in a club on a Saturday night!
Good luck, hope you get the job!

I've done a lot of interviewing recently, and I always told my candidates if I had other interviews coming up, if they were spread over a few days for instance.
I just explained that they wouldn't hear back immediately, as I was going to give everyone a fair chance and complete all interviews before making a decision.
Could it just be something this simple?

I wouldn't read into them having interviews scheduled later in the week. If they have scheduled multiple interviews they can't just cancel on the others.

I'm about to start a new job. They had several interviews scheduled after mine and told me as much but I still got the job.

20 minutes is local!

Totally agree. I had an interview that I had to cancel on the same morning as my dad had a heart attack. They offered me the chance to meet the following week and I got the job (with the boss with the weird communication style!) Definitely don't dwell on others they are seeing. It’s just part of the process.

Good luck, I have everything crossed for you.

You're massively over-thinking this.

I would never cancel pre-scheduled interviews simply because the first candidate I interviewed was appointable. It would be a total breach of our recruitment policy. If I tell a candidate that we have interviews scheduled later in the week, it means just that, and we would only make a decision after seeing all of the shortlisted candidates.

In any case, 20 mins is very local as others have said!

You've done what you can now, so stop second guessing what they have told you! Good luck!

Interviewers always say that, even if they haven't. It's meaningless but they like to keep you on the edge of your seat....idkw

I’ve interviewed a lot of people - this wouldn’t be something that affected hiring decisions in my experience!

I used to say this as a way of saying “it will take a couple of days to get back to you as we have to finalise scoring, submit the relevant documents to HR and get approval to offer - please don’t call us in the meantime!!!” 🤣

I wouldn't worry about any of that. We always say we've got a few more interviews to do, etc, even if it's the last one of the day. It's just a set expression we use to start wrapping up the interview. We then state a realistic timeframe of when they're likely to hear back (we try to be as prompt as possible).

20 minutes drive is nothing, if anything I'd say that's very close and if a candidate said that to me I'd be happy with it. If it's a school job, it's also nice to live out of the catchment area for a bit of work/life balance.

If that’s the only thing you’re worrying about, then it sounds like the interview went really well. It would have been pointless to answer that question any differently, they will have your address on the application form if they think distance is a factor. 20 minutes to work is nothing, they will have staff who live much further away. Stop overthinking. It’s done now.
I had a few interviews recently and every one of them said they had several interviews and would be a while coming back. I was offered 2/4 jobs. They will say the same thing to everyone about the timescale xxx

Overthinking massively!! You were the first candidate - you cannot expect other planned interviews to be cancelled!! Not saying you know the local area will not affect the outcome at all. Good luck!!

You're way over thinking it and I'm not sure why they asked if you were local I don't think that's fair if you feel you can get there that's all that should be required.

The interviewer is basically checking to see if you live around the corner and therefore might walk or if you have to travel any distance. You mentioned it was a 20 minute drive, so the interviewer will know you drive. I work as support staff at a school and drive 15 minutes to the school each day, it's never been an issue. I didn't even know the area particularly well either! Don't worry, it will be fine!

ZOMBIE! 🧟‍♀️ It was 3 months ago!!! She'll know the outcome by now FFS!