Ditsies College

Maybe my favorite quote of all time is from Groucho Marx when he said

"I don't care to belong to a club that accepts people like me as a member".

For some reason I have always related well with that quote, not liking a friend or a girl that would stoop so low as to be interested in me. What could be wrong with them that they like me?

That quote kind of relates to my experience over the past two months with Dixie State College (Class of 95'). In my recent situation looking for a job, I had the opportunity to interview with 7 different organizations. Three different engineering firms, a county, a private company, and the University of Utah and Utah State University. I also applied for five jobs at Dixie for which I believe I was more than qualified, at least for fouor of the five. In fact, the positions I interviewed for elsewhere blew away these jobs at Dixie in responsibility, pay, and every other way. I applied at Dixie because I wanted to stay in this area and cast as wide a net as I could. But did I get an interview at Dixie for any of the five applications I turned in? Not for one. Are they simply hiring who they want to hire, who they picked before they even advertise the position? They did not have time in any of the apps that I submitted to do interviews, I was receiving "thanks but no thanks" letters within 2 weeks of submitting my applications.

I am good enough for the U or USU but not Dixie? It is like being a guy that can date hot girls here and there but can't score a date with the ugly girl in school no matter how hard he tries. It is totally frustrating. It would be a big blow to my self-esteem if I had not received such positive feedback from other places but I came to terms with the fact that they are the ones with the problem (at least in this situation), not me.

It also does not help that I have never been around a more unprofessional group of people than those in the HR at Dixie. I got into a whole thing with the lady that took my application because I wanted to introduce myself personally to the HR director who is good friends with a friend of mine and she would not let me. I could actually see the lady behind her. Heaven forbid she take 30 seconds to shake my hand but getting past the front desk lady was not possible. I thought about just running around her desk but I was still thinking I wanted to maybe work there at that time. I would not be surprised if, as soon as I left, she took my applications and threw them right in the garbage.

I don't think she did, though, because a few days later I received five "we got your application" letters. I actually got two letters in the mail regarding each job. One stated that they received my application and then the other one (one I got the next day) stated that they had hired someone for the position. I don't know if it is nepotism, cronyism, if the number of qualified applicants was just overwhelming, or if they are just plain inept but to not even get an interview for these jobs is very offensive to me.

I hope writing a post like this does not burn any bridges there. I hope my reader does not rat me out. But I decided that before I wrote this that I don't want to work there, at least not right now or anytime soon. I think I might have one open application there still but I have totally moved on and would not interview there at this point even if they begged me. Now my concerns are not for me and a job but for Dixie and the state of the institution. I have asked around and my experience is not unusual. It seems to be common knowledge that the HR department leaves a lot to be desired, and in some instances this is a person's first impression of the college. I care about the school, it is in my town and is where I went for two years. They can keep their $40,000/year jobs to which I can't even get an interview and roll em up real tight and cram them.

So it is kind of like the Marx quote except maybe opposite? I don't want to be part of a place where I can't even get a sniff and who treats people like they do.