The current economic climate has made the job search more of a job hunt. In academics, often a thriving business during economic downturns as people return to college for re-training and degrees, there have been wide-spread reports of layoffs, hiring freezes, and salary reduction. Some institutions of higher education are growing, my college alma mater newsletter announced it had the highest enrollment increase in their history this past year. And, the Boston Globe reports today that Despite Crunch, Some Colleges Going on Hiring Binges. Last week I reflected on the increasing role email and phone interviews were playing in my personal career; technology is allowing hiring entities to cut down on costs evaluating and filling openings within their ranks. Earlier this week I received a letter from an institution; I had a phone interview with them prior to the holidays. They kindly apologized for extended lag time between my interview and subsequent contact (something I am used to when working in academics). I was thanked for my time and informed the decision had been made to disband the search committee and place the opening on hold. I was invited to resumit my application materials when the position was re-advertised. While they stopped short of saying the money was not available for a new hire, someone is currently filling the job in an interim capacity, it was certainly implied.
If the search is disbanded once for possible fiscal reasons, how secure is the position at a later time? Is the pool of applicants sufficiently large that a re-posting of the job may not be noticed and the question not asked? It's a bit of a conundrum.
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