Interviews and job acceptance etiquette

[Waterlemon]

Job seeking dilemma- wwyd?

Have you ever been offered and accepted a new Teaching post but later turned it down in favour of a different role at another school? What happened?

I have friends that work as teachers. Apparently that's very bad etiquette, and would give you a reputation that may harm your attempts to get future jobs, sorry. Apparently primary teaching in the area is a small world and people might talk...

Yes @flouncybeetroot that is the general consensus and even the unions advise you not to.

Just wondering if anyone was brave enough to do it?

Very bad form. Best case scenario, you piss the school off and can’t work there in the future. Worst case scenario, you piss the school off, head tells local heads, you struggle to find other work in the future, school can charge you for recruitment costs etc.

Basically, by agreeing to accept the job you enter into a contract with the first school (either verbally or in writing). By accepting the second job, you would be breaking it.

What’s the choice/dilemma. Can we help you work it out?

I haven't but a candidate did this to my school.
The alternative job he accepted was overseas and he never returned to this area.
If he had I think my HT would have let other HTs know what he had done as she was furious and also felt very let down by him.

To do so would be breaking a legal contract, even if it was just verbal (it is still a contract). You can't hedge your bets like this in teaching: you either want the job and accept, or your turn it down. The offer is generally made on the day.

It sucks... but that's the way it is, unless you say something like, ' I accept on the condition I don't get offered the job I'm interviewing for next week.' But what that would signify to the ht is that you want to work at the other school more and they are allowed to rescind the offer on those terms.

I’ve applied for 4 jobs.

Interview dates (should I get one) are in reverse order to my preference.

I really liked school #4 . School #4 interview is a week after the others, so I couldn’t even stall for a day or two.

Financially any job is better than no job I suppose- I’m currently doing supply and the situation is dire!

If I was you, I’d contact school 4, explain your predicament and ask if they could see you sooner.

Posted too soon.

It will depend on the context of course, but some schools would want to know that and might be able to see you earlier (right now, I could and I would; i could offer you a contract tomorrow if you were good. In my previous school, limited budgets meant I’d need to see everyone at the same time and would only be able to offer the advertised contract)

Oh #mrsJaneAusten that is a great idea!

As I’m not already in a post, I didn’t want to put all my eggs in one basket and only apply to job #4. I need a job!

And any of the 4 roles would be good, it is just that #4 ticks more of my boxes (payscale, location, year group, etc)

So, if I am invited to an interview by any of the other schools, I will contact #4 and see if they would be interested in seeing me sooner. There is about a week between the closing date and the interview date.

No harm in asking!

That approach wouldn't work where I am employed - we interview all shortlisted candidates on the same day, set up classes for observed lessons, a written exercise, then interview. Unless for a truly exceptional candidate, we wouldn't set all that up (as interviewers have class responsibilities, governors have other jobs etc) for a single candidate who wanted to shift anything earlier.

No hard in asking BUT just be aware of why it might not work out.

@cantkeepawayforever

I totally understand that too.

As we are mid-year I’m hoping the school might be a bit more flexible than they would be in April.