I've had a phone interview which was followed up by a request that I fly out to Seattle to meet with them. When I asked if they would help me pay for it their answer was no. I didn't end up going out but not for that reason.

My best advise is that it doesn't hurt to ask. I remember in the late 90's having friends get flights for interviews. Things just are not that robust yet, and even then, only major firms usually are willing to do that. Then again, if you don't ask I doubt they would offer.

Is driving an option? If you are looking in the east nothing is much more than a day or two drive from Atlanta all the way up through Boston. It sucks, and makes for really long days, but gasoline is still cheaper than plane tickets. Just a thought.

i think you would only get the lear jet sent for you if you were going for a very senior/ownership position. 2 years experience is highly unlikey your a candadite. as you know the most of us are a dime-a-dozen in saturated markets already. until the economic outlook changes, you should be very happy if you get a good interview out of your perspective employers, perhaps being offered a glass of ice water or a coffee at the meeting time.

Talk about pessimistic TED. Even in tougher times right now I think most firms that are looking for a talented person w/2-5 years experience would at least take you out for a lunch. Every person who walks in our doors gets offered a coffee, juice or a cookie. For an interview one of the partners usually takes them out to lunch. It's not that terrible out there.

For a second interview I was asked to go to the Directors house for a glass of wine and a chat. I took the job when the room began to spin.

kakacabeza, i did what your friends did when i moved from dc to san francisco. i agree with TED. you have 2 years experience and you are a dime a dozen. most firms just can't afford to fly out every possible employee from all over the country and put them up in a hotel. if you were a more senior person, things might be different. the other thing i noticed when speaking to sf firms while still in dc was that the firms didn't even want to talk to me and others until we had actually moved. they wanted to make sure you were serious about it. i moved without a job, and i got one within a month of arriving. good luck.

thats comming from someone who has had 4 plane / hotel trip/interviews reimb....

its only a metaphor for saying employers are cautious at this time, the offers are thin at best. we are not lawyers and we dont get the fees to do national searches for entry level + staff. most regions have plenty of surplus of great staff. that doesnt mean they would only hire locally, but dont disregard a firm if they dont offer to pay your expenses. i had one interview where the fellow took me around all day looking at all his projects. better than getting tanked on wine. didnt take the offer as there was too much well established nepatism in the practice [father, wife, sons.....]

if its a firm you want to work for go for it no matter whats on offer. its worth travelling to do it.

One advantage of planning a short trip to the prospective town is that many firms who would blow you off if you lived in the area (i.e. "we'll call to schedule an appointment when we have an opening") will meet with you "if your only going to be in town from March 3-6". As we all know everyone needs a deadline. This worked for me to get a lot of interviews in a short amount of time, just be ready to start quickly like someone from the area would. And, realistically, if they aren't going to fly you out then they probably aren't going to help pay moving expenses either.

Good point eu80. Back when I was in my last year of college I would put in the cover letter - "I'll be in X city from March 15-20 and would be happy to meet w/you in person." That seemed to work much better than letters I sent to cities where I was only planning on visiting if I were to get an interview. Then I even just showed up at firms that I hadn't heard from. In a weeks time I got 3 interviews right on the spot and even got an offer from one.

I've noticed some firms say they are only looking to hire people local to the area. Probably because they don't want to deal with the time involved w/moving + the stress that might result in lack of productivity associated. One friend of mine was so insistent on working in Portland he moved out w/no job and ended up working in a Target store for 6 months. In the end it all worked out for him.

by the way, where were you thinking you wanted to move?

Thanks for the responses. I just wanted to get some second opinions on the sense I already had about looking elsewhere. Part of the problem is I'm not sure exactly where I want to be, but I know I want to work for a very good firm, to see if I can get back some of my faith in architecture. Mostly I'm thinking of New York, Philadelphia, Baltimore or D.C. in the East, and Seattle in the Northwest. Philly/DC/New York are driveable and I could stay with friends, Seattle is not, but again, I have a brother living there so I could plop down for a few days to do interviews with minimal expense. Now I just need to save up so I can quit the job I'm currently at.

And I did have on friend who was aggressively courted - even had moving expenses paid for, but she had to move to Columbia, South Carolina.

cabeza, the firm i am at now in ATL hired me over the phone. i sent them some sample sheets, and they gave me a call and asked if i was really interested. they gave me a 90 day trial period, and i've been here 10 months now. Paid me a couple of hundred for the tiny u-haul trailor it took me to get my computer, desk, and bed here. since then i've come to find out that hasn't happened here before, so i think i just got really lucky. everywhere else though, they wanted me to come there, and as i was broke from being out of a job for a few months, i couldn't make it across country. i'm at the point where i want to work for a better firm as well, so good luck in your search.

another good reason to live in an r.v. good luck