I interviewed for a junior designer/drafter position around 3 weeks ago and it went very well. I was asked to submit some supplemental information which I submitted a little over a week after and got a call the day after asking me to come in to "answer some questions and talk about what expect from the jobs in terms of salary, etc."
I am actually getting a bit nervous as I am pretty clueless as to what they want to talk to me about and also dont know what to ask for salary. I was making $26 hourly(after 3 raises in a year), plus extra for overtime and full benefits (it was an amazing company) at my last job in San Francisco but I know the market is different here in San Diego. I heard that $18 hourly is what someone with a year of experience would make. I have a little over a year of experience but have only worked on Autocad and rhino professionally along with adobe suite programs. I have great references and the chairmen at my last job wrote me an amazing recc leter for me since I worked well with all the clients and had great experiences. Everything I worked on was actually built/completed and most of these projects I was the only designer on, with only the principal guiding me. I am not sure if I am crazy to ask for $18 considering that I dont have any professional experience with revit or sketchup, I only know what I have followed from tutorials online. I graduated from undergrad program 2 years ago and havent dont a masters yet.. This new job has full benefits and even a great professional development program so I am willing to be flexible on pay. However, I dont want to be underpaid as I do have quite a bit of loan payments to do and was getting paid considerably more in SF
Could someone give me some advice on what a second interview has been like and also it would be great to hear what a salary for someone with my experience is making in San Diego. Its a small firm of less than 10 people located in Northern San Diego beach area.
You should ask for atleast $20 an hour and feel confident about it, if they think that is too high (which it isn't) and they like you, they would negotiate with you. For someone with a year of experience, in a coastal city, you would be underpaid if you were not making at least $20 an hour.
@Median thanks so much for your reply, I am leaning towards asking for at least $20 after some research I have done but would hate to scare them off if it is too high. It feels like a great fit and after a few months of trying to find a good company I don't want them to loose interest. It is obviously important to be well compensated though and I think $20 feels best.
Any tips/info for a second interview? She said "to ask additional questions and to learn more about my expectations from the job". I am planning on taking my portfolio/resumes as I did last time, should I also take my reference letter?
Tell them you were making $52,000 a year in your last job. The implication is that you should start above that figure. San Diego is also a high cost of living area, of course. If they come down from that they might not come down too much. Also, ask about overtime. Doing it once and a while is no big deal, Continually working 60 hours a week for 40 hours of pay is a big deal.
Be careful posting so much info about yourself (first name, job locations) on a public forum that could let prospective employers identify you, especially during negotiation. You don't want to weaken your position.
second interview?/ san diego junior designer avg salary?
I interviewed for a junior designer/drafter position around 3 weeks ago and it went very well. I was asked to submit some supplemental information which I submitted a little over a week after and got a call the day after asking me to come in to "answer some questions and talk about what expect from the jobs in terms of salary, etc."
I am actually getting a bit nervous as I am pretty clueless as to what they want to talk to me about and also dont know what to ask for salary. I was making $26 hourly(after 3 raises in a year), plus extra for overtime and full benefits (it was an amazing company) at my last job in San Francisco but I know the market is different here in San Diego. I heard that $18 hourly is what someone with a year of experience would make. I have a little over a year of experience but have only worked on Autocad and rhino professionally along with adobe suite programs. I have great references and the chairmen at my last job wrote me an amazing recc leter for me since I worked well with all the clients and had great experiences. Everything I worked on was actually built/completed and most of these projects I was the only designer on, with only the principal guiding me. I am not sure if I am crazy to ask for $18 considering that I dont have any professional experience with revit or sketchup, I only know what I have followed from tutorials online. I graduated from undergrad program 2 years ago and havent dont a masters yet.. This new job has full benefits and even a great professional development program so I am willing to be flexible on pay. However, I dont want to be underpaid as I do have quite a bit of loan payments to do and was getting paid considerably more in SF
Could someone give me some advice on what a second interview has been like and also it would be great to hear what a salary for someone with my experience is making in San Diego. Its a small firm of less than 10 people located in Northern San Diego beach area.
Thanks!
You should ask for atleast $20 an hour and feel confident about it, if they think that is too high (which it isn't) and they like you, they would negotiate with you. For someone with a year of experience, in a coastal city, you would be underpaid if you were not making at least $20 an hour.
@Median thanks so much for your reply, I am leaning towards asking for at least $20 after some research I have done but would hate to scare them off if it is too high. It feels like a great fit and after a few months of trying to find a good company I don't want them to loose interest. It is obviously important to be well compensated though and I think $20 feels best.
Any tips/info for a second interview? She said "to ask additional questions and to learn more about my expectations from the job". I am planning on taking my portfolio/resumes as I did last time, should I also take my reference letter?
Tell them you were making $52,000 a year in your last job. The implication is that you should start above that figure. San Diego is also a high cost of living area, of course. If they come down from that they might not come down too much. Also, ask about overtime. Doing it once and a while is no big deal, Continually working 60 hours a week for 40 hours of pay is a big deal.
Be careful posting so much info about yourself (first name, job locations) on a public forum that could let prospective employers identify you, especially during negotiation. You don't want to weaken your position.
Meantime, good luck!
I am with "Volunteer", who gave solid advise. Make sure you ask for the overtime!
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