Due Diligence

I have been doing my “due diligence” considering the offer from WaMu. I have been talking with my co-workers here at Clearwire, my financial advisor, and my husband.

I have come to the conclusion that the offer is very good for someone just out of school. However, the market for someone with just 1 year of post-graduate work in this field is higher. Part of the reason I came to this conclusion was what one of the interviewers said to me; when I asked him if he had any concerns that would prevent me from being selected. He said “You don’t project confidence. You know your stuff, you have been working in your field for the past year; you should not discount that experience. Don’t sell yourself short” After I received the call confirming that I had been selected I began to review the interviews to see what it was that sealed the deal. Mary the recruiter for WaMu made it sound like they had decided on Saturday to offer me the position. Then I remembered that I had asked this one simple question of every interviewer. “Do you have any concerns that I need to clear up in order to be the top candidate?” I think this was the deal sealing question. Every interviewer seemed to be taken off guard and they all gave me valuable advice. The advice that is most immediately useful: “You should not discount (your) experience”

So, now I need to make a decision; how much or what should I ask for? I can just ask that they bump me up to the bottom of the scale based on my experience or I could ask for another week of vacation and a full compensation for my metro pass. I think that with training that I will receive on the job it would not be appropriate to ask to be bumped the full amount. So if I split the difference I will end up requesting an additional 3k or so.

I found this information out at http://www.payscale.com. I have looked at the other salary comparison sites, but I like this one the best. PayScale is very detailed for a free service. At the end it gives a nice chart that compare where you are compared to the market.

The problem I am having is justifying the increase in pay. I find it hard to believe that one year makes that big of a difference. Although, I have already been through the new-grad-stay-up-all-night-sleep-in-slacker period; so they will not have to get me to understand that point. I also have participated in a few meetings and know a how to navigate the corporate HR maze. I could act as a mentor to the fresh off the turnip truck graduates. Now all I have to do is remember to emphasize my experience and how it will benefit the company and the program.