Recruiting at the Oshkosh Placement Exchange by Ryan Podolak

This is (most of) our OPE Recruitment team - aren't we cute? From left: Ryan Podolak, Jill Powell, Tamara McClain, Steven Yeagley, Gena Stack, and Justin Schuch.

I attended the 2012 OshkoshPlacement Exchange (OPE) on the University of Wisconsin – Oshkosh campus. It is the third time I have attended the exchange (attending in 2009 as a graduate candidate and 2011 as a full-time candidate) but my first time attending as part of a search committee. I got to have the red ribbon labeled ‘EMPLOYER’ on my OPE nametag this year. (Candidates wear a blue ribbon on their OPE nametag labeled ‘CANDIDATE’.) This distinction meant I was treated more warmly by wary candidates, always on high alert, hoping to make a good impression on potential employers or potential employers’ friends.

As one would expect, it is less stressful being an employer rather than a candidate. The Southern Illinois University Carbondale (SIUC) University Housing delegation arrived late on Wednesday night. This gave us all day Thursday to set up our interview rooms and display table in the candidate waiting lounge. We organized our snacks, made sure all the candidate files were in the correct room, decked out the interview rooms in SIUC swag, polished our shoes, whitened our teeth and practiced our handshakes. (Three of those things are fictional.)

During the primary interview days (Friday and Saturday) the employer schedule closely parallels that of a candidate. We have interviews scheduled back-to-back with some breaks to write ‘Thank You’ notes, use the washroom, grab a quick lunch, and distribute snacks to candidates. In the evening on those days, we changed into the predetermined outfit for each social (Friday night was cardigans and Saturday was hoodies). SIU Carbondale is part of the GLACUHO[1] (Great Lakes Association of College and University Housing Officers) region so we attended their social Friday night and went to THE social Saturday night.

Again, similar to the candidate’s experience of reconnecting with employers they enjoyed speaking with, we (employers) are hoping to reconnect at the socials with candidates we enjoyed speaking with. Employers are after the best and we will seek out candidates, bring them over to our group, and make sure you have a chance to meet and connect with our delegation. We want to make a good impression on you just as you have made a good impression on us. After THE social, the SIUC crew headed back to the hotel to sleep and get on the road early Sunday morning.

Now it turns into a waiting game… who will say “yes”?

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[1] GLACUHO is a fantastic organization and I cannot say enough good things about it and the people behind it. It is one of the reasons I chose to stay in the region after graduate school.