Being Flown Out for an Interview

So I will date myself here a bit, when I got out of school in 1999 it was not uncommon at all to be flown out for interviews. At the time many large consulting companies were hiring and there were usually several rounds of interviews with the last being at one of their offices.

They were very formulaic. They would fly you out so you got to the hotel by early afternoon. They would have a get together with the other candidates, take you to a nice dinner and just chat with you. Then the next day was 3-4 interviews, a rush to the airport and a trip home.

I knew a few people who went on several just so they could hangout with friends they had in the city. The would do the interviews but had no intention of taking the job.

It made negotiations very interesting as you usually had 2-3 offers. Learned very quickly that you could get an extra $10k in base and equal in sign on bonus just by having a competing offer in hand. Good times....

I was once flown to Texas by a large space travel company that's looking to go to mars (I signed a NDA but I'm assuming you can guess what company) I wasnt incredibly interested in the role due to the location (middle of no where Texas) but I was willing to interview because it was a really cool company and the role had potential to sway me. I was surprised how accommodating the company was and how smooth the process was. I got a hotel and rental car paid for and was reimbursed for my meals. Because I flew out on a weekend and interviewed on a Monday it was essentially a little vacation to Texas. Really great time.

Anyone else felt the same way for their first interview being flown out?