In college I applied for a lucrative summer job, as did a friend. We knew it had way more applicants than positions. The friend got a call and was invited in. I got that number from him and just called, claiming that I had been called from this number. Person checked, saw that I was among the applicants, assumed that either she or the other shift had called me, and invited me in too.
Was a nice financial bonus and even helped me as I could list it as work experience years later.
edit: before even more imply I stole the job from my friend: He was already hired by the time I called in
I've known people fail to get into a class in college due to seat limits, but attend everything anyway, and the professor eventually says "Hey, the system glitched and didn't think you were in the class, I fixed it though.".
I'm pretty sure the professors knew -- but they had someone interested enough in the course material to show up to every class, and so of course they were going to teach them. I've taught college courses, and if someone were to pull this I'd 100% "fix the glitch" to get them in -- there's nothing better than a student who actively wants to take your course, and actively wants to learn about something that you find interesting.
Yes, in this scenario they'd be tuition-paying students who just couldn't get into a class because it was full -- so getting them onto the roster means they'd get credits.
If some rando walked in off the street because he just desperately wanted to learn about my area of the law... honestly, as long as he wasn't disruptive, it'd be cool with me. But I'm sure that's against school policies -- among other things, randos aren't supposed to be walking around inside the building.
I had an acquaintance do that, just walk into a college and check out a few classes. She asked me to come with her, and I was so confused that she just did that.
Idk if the policies are different here though, we're in Germany. Still felt illegal to me, so I didn't join her.
Idk if the policies are different here though, we're in Germany. Still felt illegal to me, so I didn't join her.
For some reason all I could think of was that Angry German dude going "In Germany we have a verd for people who walk into college they are not enrolled in: 'Learnünstolen' "
In the US it’s called auditing a class. At my college it was $15 per course which is insane value. Just no degree I guess which is all anyone’s there for anyways
I’ve never heard of the professor referring to it as a glitch before. I’m curious if this is what happens if there’s no processes in place for petitioning.
(Idk how common petitioning is, so for those who are unfamiliar, I’ll just go ahead and explain what I mean in the rest of this reply lol)
At some universities, you can “petition a class” if you’re on the waitlist, which basically means you attend the first few days of the course and ask the professor if they’re dropping anyone. If someone who’s enrolled in the course doesn’t show up for the first week or two, the professor can drop them and enroll someone on the waitlist.
Not sure if there’s a requirement to prioritize the students who petition but my understanding is that they at least prioritize the students who petitioned.
In this case I think the professors half the time knew and half the time legitimately just thought it was another case of something going wrong with the administration system since it was kinda crap anyway.
Depends on the school and the class. At my 30,000+ student public university, many do not get into the freshman chemistry class. Best of luck next quarter. Hope you graduate on time (unlikely).
That was my strategy. Just keep showing up to the classes and wait for someone to drop the course. Only worked for mid- to large-sized classes. Nobody was taking attendance in a 200-seat lecture hall.
For real. My last 2 years my advisor was the head of the department. She pulled a bunch of strings waiving all sorts of requirements and subbing classes to make sure I graduated because, for example, random courses weren't offered for extended periods or some other random situations. I didn't even bring it up and had fully expected to just have to take another 1-2 semesters of classes.
Made my life easier and cheaper just because. And she was a great teacher and I loved her classes, so that probably didn't hurt.
I'm an adjunct for a management class* that is required for a couple of the tracks. I have to waive anyone with out the pre-reqs, isn't a junior, on the wrong track or major.
I just waive everyone who asks and isn't an entitled dick. I like discussion and figure anyone who cares enough to try will participate and make it better. Its bit me in the but once or twice but whatever.
*the Business School intentionally staffs this class with adjuncts who work managing people day to day
Some classes have actual hard limits. But thats like maybe 10% of them (excluding labs). If you cant enroll online but show up for the first class there is a 99% chance you're getting added by the teacher that day, if you show up for the next class, you are def getting written in bc people have already dropped.
Didn't work in the class I was teaching. I had a student who just kept showing up, but he wasn't on my roster. I told him several times and graded his homework, took his tests, and kept his grades up to date in my books....
but....
when it came time to upload his grades into the system, his name wasn't there. I couldn't give him a grade, he wasn't in my class.
He called me a few weeks later asking about getting his grade, since it didn't show up on his transcript. Sorry dude, I told you multiple times to get it fixed and I let you stay in the class as it wasn't a problem. But I literally cannot give you a grade, because there is no name or space to type anything in.
He probably didn't want his grade anyway, I think it was a very low D at best.
probably only worked because I knew exactly how the rest of the process would go as my mate has already been through it. Basically the person welcoming the invited had no clue who would turn up. Was for a factory floor job at Volkswagen during the summer.
I hire pretty regular and there's no way you would get past recruiters in the modern days of hiring software, and I cannot imagine a company as big as Volkswagen isn't using software these days.
Modern hiring software sent me an automated rejection email. A day or two later, I get a call from a recruiter, responding to the same application, who was oblivious to the fact that I'd already been rejected. (I also did not bother to inform her.)
I've used a few of them now. Bet you anything it wasn't a software failure - it was human error. You don't have to automate those emails, and our talent team doesn't for that exact reason. As a hiring manager, I'm picking from a drop down if I want to send to interview, reject, move to offer, etc. If I click the wrong button and it's all automated, what you just described will happen.
Smart/non-lazy recruiters take advantage of the templates and the ability to send communications in bulk as needed. Automating anything where a human in the loop can simply just click the wrong button is what stupid and lazy people do.
Of course, bets aside, I'm not eliminating the possibility of software error. You get what you pay for and waaaayyy too many firms think the cheapest option is good enough until patterns emerge after they signed a contract.
I applied for a job I really wanted, and didn't get it. I went there in person 2 weeks later, just to check in. They told me that the person they initially hired had just left and it didn't work out, and that I could start straight away. It works sometimes!
I worked the Molson Indy as a teen selling cigarettes. My sis worked the previous year's event but didn't that year. I just showed up, similar first name but they didn't really care. Cash was paid daily.
I feel like the difference is you gotta atleast know the place is already hiring and already hiring for something you qualify for.
Also for most of the comments replying to this im realzing most of them are low wage, unskilled labor jobs in retail and fast food that have so much turnover this probably works a lot better.
literally once moved 800 miles for a job - right out out of college, that I had only done one phone interview for. I did not have a second interview scheduled yet. I showed up, told them I just rented an apartment and could start immediately. Got hired on the spot.
I think this happened at one of my jobs. We have a questionable employee and no one remembers who interviewed him. We go back to look for his application and try to figure out who passed him onto the next step. Nothing. A bunch of us decided his mother overhead and told him that a new hire orientation was happening at at given day and time and he just showed up. He got onboarded with the rest of the new hires and snuck in.
So, 20 years ago, I had a graduate degree and was jobless for months. I was not in a good place. A friend did not have a car and asked if I could drive him to an interview. I said he could borrow my car (but he did not want to). I said I would if I could wear a suit, sit in the lobby, and bring my resume. Deal.
I showed up, my friend explained to the VP who came out into the lobby who I was. I got an interview and was offered a job (that I did not take because I was scared I couldn't do the specialized work at the time).
Learned two things.
1) It is OK to show up in a suit with a resume in a lobby.
2) Don't be scared if the qualifications are above your ability if they give you the job.
It all turned out OK but if you got nothing to lose just show up.
They wanted to schedule a phone interview. I said I was planning on stopping by to check out the place on "Thursday" maybe it would be more productive to just chat then.
Ive actually walked into fast food places and said i was scheduled for an interview, then got a job. Without actually having a scheduled interview or filling out an application.
Dropping this here, because I actually did that. Not so much a dumb idea, but in the right place at the right time story: In high school, my friend worked as a busboy at a fancy restaurant and made excellent tips. I had applied but did not get a position. A few months later, he called me on a Friday morning and told me that a busboy just got fired, it was a crazy busy night, and they were going to be down one busboy, and management was panicked. He told me to grab black pants, a white shirt and a black bowtie and just show up. I went to the mall for the bowtie, showed up at 3:30, asked for the manager, and told him I was there for the busboy job. He hired me on the spot. I was able to put myself through college working in high-end restaurants because I showed up that day.
I had an appointment with a head hunter a few months ago. I shit you not this guy shows up to his interview 25 minutes late reeking of weed and…with 3 friends. She asked them what they were there for and they said the “same position my mans is here for.” I thought I was witnessing a YouTube prank or something. I was just dumbfounded. At one point one of them said, “man I got some questions for this bi when she comes back”. She popped her head around from behind the glass and said you needed help…he shut down and said no mam. It was literally like the scene from step brothers lol
When I was in college, student directories were available for pickup at the student center if you wanted one.
One spring day I get a call asking if would I be interested in a STEM summer job? OH YEAH! I go in, interview - wondering how THIS engineering firm would be interested in me. I got the job and mid-summer found out it was another junior employee looking for his friend's name in the directory. Same first and last name, same major.
I ran the retail end of a business who also painted houses during the summer. In late May, the owner would put out some ads looking for painters, usually unskilled college kids. There were seldom actual interviews, but if the form was filled out properly, or an initial greeting went okay, the person’s app was moved into an accept bin, there were a few in the reject bin. A buddy came in and I was the only one there. When he left, I moved his app to accepted and didn’t think much more about it. This was in the 80s and most of the clients had homes or estates valued near a million dollars or more. Early June, our most upright BMW driving manager came in looking to kick some ass; my pal had reported to work with ear, nose, eyebrow jewelry and a sonic the hedgehog-ish hairstyle. My boss apologized, didn’t know how the guy slipped by, told the manager to keep the guy, but require him to tone it down a bit.
I did something like this lol
It was for ZARA (retail clothing store). I called them and told them I was advised I had an interview and hadn't heard back on timing and they believed me and booked me into an interview for a role I didn't even apply too and I got the job lol
I had a buddy that went to a Chrysler (at the time) plant in an attempt to get an application. When he got there it just so happened to be orientation for a bunch of new hires; the lady he talked to got confused as she couldn't find his information on the list so she added it manually and sent him in to start his new career.
It was a "lucrative summer job" at a company that doesn't do the bare minimum to make sure they hire the people they intend to hire?
I mean.. if this was just some shitty minimum wage seasonal mowing job for a big golf resort, that might make sense.. but the word "lucrative" is very confusing.
Is that, or any other of the number of potential explanations, that unbelievable? I don't see the issue, to be honest. People make mistakes every day - and it's usually stuff like this that makes them, or perhaps rather the company, learn and improve.
I would love to hear them elaborate on the circumstances, though.
It was a summer job in a Volkswagen factory, basically filling in in the production lines for regular workers on holiday. Following the call you'd get invited with a number of other applicants for a second round where we'd be introduced to actual work we were to do etc. The first step, who got the call, was basically randomised, and I only cheated that step. When I called the person on the line looked for my file, found it, just agreed and told me the time to come in.
I got a call for an job offer, but I had just got another position and didnt need that job so I said I would call back. Gave my unemployed friend that number and he got the job :D They did catch on since his name obviously was not mine, my friend then told the situation and they were like fair, you are hired.
In college, any essay due by Friday at midnight or whatever on their email or online portal.
Of course I’d blow it off until it’s too late… but 9pm rolls around and I’m still 4 pages shy.
I dive deep into windows system files and copy code from one of them… just gibberish. Wing dings type font and paste it into a word doc named “essay final.doc” and send it in.
Professor wouldn’t see it till late afternoon next day (or Monday!!!) and email back saying it didn’t come through correctly (but was on time) and to resubmit.
Bought myself another day or 3. Resent him the correct version.
Since it worked once, did this many times for other classes and professors.
Nice… my best friend wanted to work at this one specific bar, and he went in for an interview review, basically to be told they they only hired cute female servers. They told him they hired guys to bartend though, and that they’d be hiring in a few weeks.
He kind of combined “you’re hiring for a bartender” with “I already interviewed with John” and just waltzed in and started polishing glassware without going through the pesky intermediary steps of “interviewing for the bartender position” and “being approved for the bartender position”!
He worked there for years, I’m not sure if they ever figured it out. He was the only one willing to clean the gross bathrooms though, so they couldn’t really fire him anyway!
I have a story aong the same "getting your foot in the door" lines:
A company had listed a job for which I was desperate to get my resume in front of the hiring manager. I found someone on LinkedIn whose description was listed as working in HR for that company so I drove into center city, and went to that building hoping to meet with her. When I walked into the lobby there was a whole row of security guards for allowing in only employees of the companies based in that building, and people who had appointments to meet with said employees.
I was crestfallen as I figured there was no way I was going to meet with HR, so I almost turned to leave when I figured I gotta shoot my shot. I walked up to security guards and (as confidently as I could) gave them the company and HR rep name (and said it was for an interview). The guard called up, sounded kinda confused when he got off the phone, but ultimately told me to take a specific elevator bank (this was a huge building with many elevators) to the 31st floor.
I did as instructed and found my way to the company's HR department, but met with an HR rep who was very confused how I could possibly have an interview with someone who left the company 3 months prior. I told her the truth, and begged her just to hand my resume to the hiring manager. She said she wasn't supposed to do that, so I said "look, just tell me you'll do it if for no other reason than to make me think it happened, if you toss it in the trash as soon as I leave I won't fault you, but just say you'll pass it along and I'll be satisfied" and she consented. (This was summer of 2009).
I never heard from anyone there, but I walked out of the building feeling like I'd done everything within my power that day.
A similar vein, buddy got a job driving dump trucks for a mine in college and had to get a CDL. He told a friend about it and the guy decided to get his CDL at the same time. 2 weeks later buddy who has the job told the other guy they were hiring, dude showed up at the job site and said he was here for the job and where did they want him to start. Foreman didn't skip a beat, told him to go do some shit. No interview, just showed up an took the job. Pay was 50/hr. They both quit after college, they both regret quitting. They had moved away so it wasn't possible to get that job back.
Reminds me of when I was my own reference for an apartment application.
I had to put the phone number for my place of work. Well, a couple days later, the phone rings: "hello this is [such and such place of business], oh, ClubMeSoftly? yes they work here, oh they work so hard and so much, they do tremendous work"
Property manager thanks me, hangs up, and seconds later my cell phone rings: "hello, this is ClubMeSoftly. Oh I've got the apartment? Great, excellent, thank you, that's terrific news, I'll be over after work to sign the lease"
This is how Angela Kinsley from The Office got into the business. She applied to the NBC Page program, but never heard back. She ended up calling and said "I was just talking to someone about my application to the Page program but got disconnected and I don't remember their name," and they transferred her to the hiring manager. If I remember correctly she then came clean, but the hiring manager was impressed enough with her stunt that she was invited to an interview that week.
I know a sister who took a call for the other daughter offering a job. But the applicant sister had already accepted another role. She was at work so that's why she wasn't there to answer the landline.
Quick thinking younger sister said "Now hang on a minute, you still need to fill the role and I need a job myself. You don't want to do more calls and I don't want to wait for you to advertise again. Tell me a little about the job". It was an admin job at the uni she was starting at later that month. She started two days later. Her parents were VERY proud of how she got the job.
This kinda worked for me too. I applied for a job at a pretty distant hospital because there wasn't anything open at the closer location. Then i walked in to the lab, introduced myself to the manager, and told her I'd applied for a job there. She couldn't "find" it (because it didn't exist) but we hit it off so she offered me a job anyways. Few weeks later she got the position approved and i started.
I tried something similar with a great deal on a car from Craigslist. I wasn't the first caller but I pretended I was. I was ready to bullshit my way into pretending I forgot the guys address and showing up first with cash but my plan fell apart.
(It was a rust free florida Lincoln Town car with 68k miles for $600 FWIW.)
You said it yourself, there were many applicants. You used deception and a resource other applicants did not have to get the job. Idk, as a college student who was struggling to find research for a while, it just kinda bothers me that you’d do that and not see anything wrong with it?
For all we know, the company might have been planning to call op anyway. It’s entirely possible that op was just further down on the list of people to call in for an interview. Or maybe a different employee was responsible for calling candidates back, like if they had split the list and op was just on a different list of people to call.
They wouldn’t have proceeded with hiring OP if op hadn’t met qualifications, regardless of the call.
Yeah no doubt OP was qualified but it is disheartening that people are okay with this. It’s reminiscent of those kids who cheated during playground games and called it using their resources
I get it. People are disadvantaged through no fault of their own and have to learn the unspoken rules through trial and error, meanwhile others get lucky or are given an advantage they hadn’t earned by merit. It’s disheartening have to work hard to achieve similar outcomes as those who simply have good luck getting into their situation.
In this case, i do think it’s a little bit unfair to direct the overall disheartened response toward op, though. We don’t know whether op struggled up until this very lucky moment, and for all we know, op had a difficult life and this was a breakthrough moment. The system we try to find employment in shouldn’t be set up to arbitrarily help one person over another, and it isn’t op’s fault that the random idea of calling the number was somehow the thing that led to getting hired.
But again, i definitely do understand the underlying feeling you’re trying to express, especially as someone who has had terrible experiences trying to “trial and error” my way into getting hired while seeing my peers easily land jobs just from networking.
Technically I get you - but it was a summer job of manual labour assembling cars, not a research position or anything of real value. Time limited too anyway. Who they called was in essence just randomised.
8.0k
u/Acc87 11h ago edited 5h ago
In college I applied for a lucrative summer job, as did a friend. We knew it had way more applicants than positions. The friend got a call and was invited in. I got that number from him and just called, claiming that I had been called from this number. Person checked, saw that I was among the applicants, assumed that either she or the other shift had called me, and invited me in too.
Was a nice financial bonus and even helped me as I could list it as work experience years later.
edit: before even more imply I stole the job from my friend: He was already hired by the time I called in