In our newest “how can we help you?” thread, a reader asks:

I thought I was very lucky this year and got three on-campus interview requests. I have found out through various channels that ALL THREE searches have an internal candidate.

Is this normal? Should I have asked “is there an internal candidate?” before accepting these interviews? It’s my first year on the market so I was expecting to be crushed, but not in this way. I am graduating late (August instead of May) because of all the travel and prep. I’m trying to be grateful for all the practice, but mostly I just feel like I have been used and lied to.

These are fair questions, and I empathize. However, my sense is that while there are often internal candidates for positions, they do not always get hired, even when the job ad looks like it was “written for them.” This may not be the case for all search committees, but in my experience SCs tend to want to hire the best person for the job. But this is just my admittedly anecdotal experience.

What’s yours? It would be especially helpful to hear from search committee members.

Originally appeared on The Philosophers’ Cocoon Read More