Did this cause me to lose an opportunity?
 

A few week ago, I applied for a job at a store near my home. The group interviews were the following week. I told them I couldn't make it because I would be out of town on the day of the interview. I asked if I could schedule an interview either before I left or after I came back. The cashier told me that she would have to speak to the manager and see what he or she would arrange a one on one interview with me. I have not heard from them since. I wonder if my being out of town at the time affected my chances of getting the job.

:confused: :o :( :eek:

I would hope that something you already had scheduled would not hurt your chances of getting a job.
Have you followed up with the manager, however I would bypass the cashier.


-wendi

If they wanted to hire someone right away, it could be possible that they already filled the position. It has nothing to do with your credentials; they just needed to fill the spot as soon as possible.
You need to talk to the manager directly. Call the manager and say, "Unfortunately, I am unable to attend the group interview sessions. I do not want this to hurt my chances of receiving this position because this job seems really interesting to me (or some kind of BS :) ). Is there anyway that you can possibly meet with me at another time?"
Hopefully, the manager will be willing to meet with you at a later date.

IF there were numerous applicants, then they really didn't need to hold the spot. A headhunter for a large corp would do that, but for a lot of jobs, qualified applicants are not a problem.

Sometimes when dependability is an issue, being unable to attend a scheduled interview could be seen as a negative, especially if they needed to fill the position in a hurry.

Don't take it personally. I too think it would be a good idea to ask if the position is still open. If it's a "great" job opportunity,
go there in person and ask to meet the manager. Tell him/her what happened and that if anything opens up in the future, you would love to meet with them.

In my opinion, not being able to make the interview on the their terms hurt your chances. Unless the job is in an extremely specialized field with few applicants and you are highly qualified in the field, I wouldn't look for the employer to make many concessions concerning pre-employment interviews.