Katherine beamed with excitement as she took the very thick envelope from Company A out of her mailbox. Since it was Friday, she thought this was a wonderful way to begin her weekend. Katherine had visited the company only two days ago and had not been given any indication that she would hear from them so soon. Graduating in six months, Katherine had worried that the tightened economy might lead to a scarcity of job offers for her.

Introduced to Company A at the career fair on Monday, Katherine had been invited at that time to visit the company's facilities on Wednesday. During the site visit, recruiters discussed the fact that every employee had made a six-figure salary within nine months, even though the company had offered employees starting salaries lower than most in the industry. While at the facility, Katherine was given the opportunity to speak briefly to two employees. Unfortunately, neither employee discussed salary during this session. Although Katherine had some reservations, she believed she could work for the company.

However, Katherine also hoped to receive an offer from Company B, a large, well-established company with a solid reputation. She had been interviewed by the firm last week, and was told she would be contacted within the next week. Katherine planned to travel home next weekend, and looked forward to discussing her prospects with her parents. She also wanted to gather more information on Company A next week, in order to make a more informed decision regarding any potential offers.

Unfortunately, when Katherine read the offer letter from Company A, she discovered that she must inform them about her decision by Monday. The letter stated that the quick deadline existed because so many people desired the few positions that were available. The letter emphasized the fact that the company would not grant any extensions.

Questions to consider:

1. Is Company A's request that a decision be made by the next business day fair?
   
   
2. Under the circumstances, Katherine is tempted to accept Company A's offer to allow her more time to research the company even though she might later renege on the offer. What advice would you give her? Would your advice be different if she were given three business days vs. three calendar days to make a decision?
   
   
3. Should the company be required to provide the student with more information regarding their claim of six-figure salaries by all employees within nine months of service?
   
   
4. What actions, if any, would you take with the company?

Steps to Resolution

1. Is Company A's request that a decision be made by the next business day fair?
No. According to Principle #1 for employment professionals, "employment professionals will refrain from any practice that improperly influences and affects job acceptances", and these practices may include "undue time pressures for the acceptance of employment offers". Moreover, this issue was specifically addressed in the Principles Committee Position Paper on Exploding Offers. The document recommends that employers give students a minimum of three weeks to return a decision on a job offer, noting that "the best employment decisions (for both students and employers) are those that are made with the greatest amount of information". Importantly, it is also noted that students given sufficient time are less likely to renege on job acceptances. Company A's deadline restricts Katherine's ability to gather more information about both Companies A and B. For example, she does not have an opportunity to confirm Company A's claims regarding six-figure salaries or to inquire of Company B when they will be returning a decision.

2. Under the circumstances, Katherine is tempted to accept Company A's offer even though she might later renege on it later. What advice would you give her? Would your advice be different if she were given three business days vs. three calendar days to make a decision?
Offer to assist Katherine by calling Company A and discussing the value of providing her with more time and referencing the NACE Position Paper, as well as the policy, if there is one, of the career services' office regarding offer timelines. Assist Katherine in comparing the two offers, given the limited information she has about them. Additionally, assist her in gathering further information quickly by contacting colleagues to determine if they have any experiences, good or bad, with Company A. No, the advice would be the same, but with the additional time, you could assist her in gathering even more information.

3. Should the company be required to provide the student with more information regarding their claim of six-figure salaries by all employees within nine months of service?
Yes, Company A's claim is used as a selling point and it should, therefore, be documented so students have some way of verifying the claim.

4. What actions, if any, would you take with the company?
As noted above, offer to assist Katherine by contacting the company and discussing the situation with them. It is important to emphasize that even if she declines the offer, you should have this discussion with the company because their actions likely represent a recruiting practice and not an isolated incident. Therefore, without intervention, their actions will cause problems for other students and for other career centers.