<p>I had a company call me in for an on-site interview. I felt great until I ready the part where they said they wont reimburse me or pay for my airfare fees to and from the location. Is this normal?</p>
<p>Was this a company that primarily hires from their local area? Is it a small or large company?</p>
<p>Large Company, Fortune 17… The location where the company is located at does not have any large universities.</p>
<p>It is more common that if a company thinks a candidate is worth recruiting, it will pay for travel costs for an on-site interview.</p>
<p>This is for an internship position by the way. I don’t know if this is any different. Do you think maybe if I show up to the interview they will provide some sort of reimbursement?</p>
<p>I wouldn’t count on it! Best to ask in advance. And if you can’t afford to fly out there, suggest that you do a skype interview…</p>
<p>For a professional interview, the company would normally cover travel expenses - they’ll make it up out of your productivity in the years you will work for them. For internships, being on your own here is not unusual. It would not surprise me that a company would not cover the expenses, as they are not going to get that money back out of you in productivity during your 3 months of “work”. </p>
<p>There is nothing wrong with contacting the company and explaining that you are unable to attend an onsite interview. Depending on the company, it may be possible to schedule an offsite interview (if they will have an appropriate person in your area any time soon), a phone interview, or (as mom already suggested) a phone interview. MOST companies won’t expect you to drop a few thousand bucks on the possibility of an intership, and the ones that WILL are probably not worth associating yourself with.</p>
<p>I would not go if they would not pay for it. There are plenty of other internships out there.</p>
<p>This is why most internships are done locally.</p>
<p>It’s not uncommon. I don’t think our company would pay to fly an intern candidate out to our offices, but we’d definitely pay to fly someone out for a full-time permanent position. (My company actually ended up flying me out <em>twice</em>…)</p>
<p>Like others said, I’d offer to be as flexible as I could, but I wouldn’t fly out there for an onsite interview. Offer to do Skype, offer to send them supplementary materials and do a second phone interview, offer to do whatever you can, but apologize and say that you appreciate their invitation to interview in person, but that being a student, flying out there on your own dime is simply out of your budget.</p>
<p>FYI… If you get to do a Skype interview, wear business attire even though you’re not there in person, and make sure that you don’t have posters of porn stars or something in the background. Find a quiet, neutral place and keep paper copies of your resume and other documentation in front of you, and have pertinent files (transcripts, resumes, cover letters, letters of reference or list of references, important reports or samples of your work) on your computer’s desktop that you can e-mail to your interviewers immediately as they ask for them. If you’re not there in person, you’ll want to impress the wadding out of them to show that you’re invested in the opportunity, and being super-prepared and super-professional will be the way you can do it.</p>
<p>As others have said it’s not uncommon at all. I certainly would not pay travel expenses for an intern.</p>
<p>The last place I was at (a start-up in Sunnyvale) would not pay travel expenses for any interviewees below executive level. Being in silicon valley we’re used to most candidates being local. There are so many to choose from that there’s not much reason to incurr the travel expenses unless it’s a very specialized skill set that we can’t find locally.</p>
<p>My current employer only recruits locally, unless we just can’t find the right person, then they’ll consider it.</p>
<p>Well I chose to fly out anyways guys. The plane ticket from Austin to El Paso is not terribly high (I used some of my scholarship money to pay for it) so I guess ill be doing an on-site interview. Weird thing is that the only closest city to El Paso is Lubbock (Texas Tech University) so I guess most people will be flying in. I don’t think UTEP has an ABET accredited engineering program though…</p>
<p>UTEP has an ABET accredited program. I think you’re underestimating UTEP… As you’ve found out, it’s the only major university within a 200-mile radius.</p>
<p>Do you think Ill be at a disadvantage since I’m so far away?</p>
<p>Just had a question but can I ask during the interview if they provide housing assistance if I get the internship? The lady during the phone interview asked me if I needed housing assistance and I told her I could stay with my cousins but it turns out they don’t have enough room for me in their apartment.</p>
<p>By housing assistance, I assume they mean they will help you look for a place? I’m surprised they would pay for any housing if they won’t provide airfare for the interview.</p>
<p>Yes that is what I meant. I know top companies such as Merck and Shell (companies that my classmates have had internships with out of state) provide their interns with housing. I’m just kind of still confused as to why such a “Fortune 17” company doesn’t provide any incentive or assistance to its interns and potential employees.</p>
<p>I don’t know what kind of financial situation the company is in. Maybe they don’t really have plans on hiring additional people (for full-time positions) in the near future and don’t feel it’s a wise investment at this point in time. </p>
<p>I’m sure they have their reasons. They’re not dumb.</p>
<p>The time to ask that is if you are offered the position. Stick to what you can do for them!</p>
<p>Their refusal to cover certain costs may simply reflect the supply of interns and the perceived importance of internal training over initial state. If they have a ton of intern applicants willing to jump through hoops to get the job, why cover airfare? And if they honestly think that the quality of applicants who will ignore the downsides is sufficient to their needs, why cover housing?</p>