Show Me the Money: Notes from the Salary Negotiation Panel

By Angela Sun

Last Wednesday, I had the opportunity to attend the Salary Negotiation Workshop hosted by Tufts Career Center in Dowling Hall.

(If you're thinking, "Who? What? How wasn't I there?" Then remember to regularly check our e-calendar for our upcoming events!)

The workshop was in the form of a panel moderated by Bob Burdick of the UEP Program. Panelists included:

• Jennifer Antle, College Recruiter at Liberty Mutual,
• Lisa DiTullio, A11 (Psychology), Human Resources Associate at Reit Management & Research LLC
• John Hurley, Human Resources Business Partner at Americas Sales, and Formerly Talent Acquisition Manager and Worldwide College Relations Manager at Analog Devices,
• Jessica Yu, College Recruiting and Student Program Manager  at The MITRE Corporation.
• and Rachael Wolber, A12 (IR and Environmental Studies), Grant Writer at the Appalachian Mountain Club

In case you missed the event, here are my notes from the event. You know what they say, a dollar negotiated is a dollar earned. 

When should I negotiate my salary?

The answer is pretty much always... if the salary is negotiable that is. There may be situations in which salary is not negotiable. For example, one of the career center counselors mentioned that many recruiters from consulting firms do not negotiate entry-level salaries. So ask if the salary is negotiable first! 

Now if the salary is negotiable, you should always negotiate simply because if you don't, the chances of getting more money is zero, so you really have nothing to lose. For some organizations, your promotions will be a percentage increase on your starting salary, so this number could have implications beyond just your first year/ employment period. 

"Often times you can pick up cues from employers as to when to bring up salary negotiation"--Hurley. 

"Though I didn't, I probably should have negotiated for my first salary. I was an intern, I knew the people, knew the company, etc."--DiTullio.

How much should I ask for?

I would direct you first to this fantastic post on our blog about where to go to research salary ranges for a reasonable expectation. With websites like glassdoor.com etc., take everything you read with a grain of salt because the information on the site is not verified. In addition to the resources suggested in the post, I would add that networking with professionals in the field or even the firm is another great way to get reliable information!

"Rapport is really important, building a relationship with the HR recruiter through the interview process made the negotiation process much more comfortable and allowed me to get more information." -- Wolber.

"For most firms, there is in fact an approved 'range'. Look at what other people, with similar experiences as you, get in the company"--DiTullio.

How to negotiate?
You are much more likely to be successful if you can back up your number with why you should be paid that amount. Solid bargaining points include realistic costs like reallocation (not loans, those are your own responsibility!) or any special skills/ experiences to the table.

"We worked with a candidate because he had legitimate costs like reallocation to factor in. Though we did not change the initial offer, we made sure that the numbers made sense for him in terms of the full package, including compensation, etc."

"Solid work experience is an important bargaining chip. College graduates sometimes must be realistic about the fact that they might have less to work with, even if they did internships."-- Antle.

"Don't ask for money just because you 'want' more. If you are honest and confident, you will be heard out. But salary negotiation is different from shopping, it's important to stay reasonable, rather than throw out really high numbers in hope of being met in the middle."--Yu.

"I have never been offended by someone negotiating who could back up their number."--Hurley.

How much time do I have to negotiate?
This factor will range from firm to firm, depending on when you are given the offer. Most likely, you will not have a lot of time to respond, this could be only a few hours or a few days...so make sure you do your research prior to receiving an offer.

"If a candidate was hired in August the previous year, then I might give him or her a couple of months, but if the candidate was hired in May, the maybe only a couple of weeks."--Antle.

What are some pitfalls in the process?
Asking for way too much money is obviously a key one. But miscommunication can also result in an unpleasant experience!

"Sometimes a deal just doesn't happen because the gap in expectations is too great"--DiTullio.

"Be consistent in your communication. It's bad form if I don't hear from a candidate for a really long time, and then all of a sudden hear from them again." --Antle. 

"Have one point of contact only on the issue. Nothing is more frustrating if I am negotiating with you, and you go to another person in the company to try to play us against each other."--Hurley.

The last piece of advice I would offer you is to look at salary negotiation from the employers point of view. 

"We are not out to low ball you! If we bring you on board at a salary that is out of the norm, then we must also justify our decision to other employees. You were given an offer because we genuinely want to bring you on the team."--Yu

"Firm to firm is different. When I was at PwC, there wasn't much negotiation for starting salary because we hired a lot of college grads to do the same thing. But at a smaller company, that flexibility might exist."

"You tell me. How will you make an impact/ contribution to the team at my company? What are you trying to achieve? Start by being introspective."--Hurley.

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My Experience With the Job Search: Report A Hire

This is the third in a series of posts about my quest to find post-graduate employment. For the previous two posts in the series, please go here and here.


The Monday before the two-week deadline, I received an email from an HR Coordinator in Washington DC, where the company is headquartered, asking me to send her a list of references. That whole day was spent sending a barrage of emails to potential references, and I was thrilled (and lucky) to receive quick and willing responses. After collecting the email addresses and phone numbers of 6 or so references (and double-checking their accuracy a zillion times), I emailed the list by the end of the day.

It was only after completing the frantic exercise of reference-collecting that I could sit back and ask: what does this all mean? I had never been asked to share references for an internship or job opportunity before (apart for the occasional academic program), and I had no idea what this signified in the vein of job-applying. Do employers reference all of the top contenders? Are references used to make decisions between candidates? Or is it the last step before an offer? Everyone seemed to have a different answer. My ever-optimistic dad was convinced it was the latter option; meanwhile, my pragmatic mom said it was a good sign, but that I shouldn’t get my hopes up quite yet. My go-to friends on Google search also had different answers (as well as incredibly entertaining stories. One especially enraged man, for instance, decided it would be a good idea to threaten every employer who didn’t offer him the job).

The week that followed was an oscillating sea-saw of emotions. I was an irritable, antsy, and sleep-deprived mess. As my references contacted me to tell me about their glowing reviews, I felt incredibly hopeful, imagining myself receiving the offer in no-time. This exuberant optimism slowly dissipated as the two-week deadline came and went. As friends, family, and Career Services reinforced, the hold-up could be anything, from a busy schedule in the HR office to a sluggish administrative process. There were also other less-than-promising possibilities: that HR was simultaneously checking other candidates. Or that they had made another offer and were waiting on the response.

By Friday, I was tired of waiting and thinking, of forming quasi-absurd scenarios in my head. I accepted that the “no-news” wasn’t exactly good-news, and that I shouldn’t count on this position. I planned to follow up with the firm on Monday and, in the meantime, urged myself to start considering other options (obviously easier said than done).

Friday afternoon, I was distracted by the series of interviews I conducted alongside Shimrit for the ambassador position. By the end, I’d half-forgotten about the unsettling piece of unheard news; that is, until I checked my phone. I saw that I had missed a call from an unknown number with a 202-area code. My heart slammed against my chest. Flushing, I grabbed my cell-phone and ran outside the offices, frantically dialing my voicemail. The voicemail was from a HR coordinator in Washington DC, asking me to call her back immediately.

I looked like a frantic, disheveled mess as I made that phone call; my fingers were uncontrollable, dialing all the wrong numbers and shaking as they managed to find the right ones. My bag and coat were sprawled in a mess right next to me, most certainly blocking the passage of the gaggles of students and tour-groups exploring Dowling. The person that picked up the phone, of course, was not the woman who had called me, and I had to admit that no, I did not remember her last name (I could not begin to process it), but can I please be put on the phone with a Michelle? I think?

That was when I was offered the position. It was shocking and thrilling and weird and mind-boggling and every single emotion at once. I wanted to shout yes, yes, yes, but she told me that I shouldn’t give her an answer yet, and that we would arrange another time to speak the following week. Then, in a well-intended explanation that felt way longer than it was, she laid out my compensation and benefits, which she promised to send via email. It all sounded fabulous, at least what I processed. When I hung up the phone, I ran in to tell the very people that, in all their support and wisdom and selfless guidance, helped make it all happen. Being at Career Services when I first heard the news felt oddly symbolic; it was if my experiences at the office felt really complete, as if everything had come full-circle.

Back at my dorm a few days later, I at last clicked the button on TuftsCareerConnect I had been so eager to press: Report a Hire. Entering basic information for the office database---including company name, address, position, and hours---made the whole job thing feel uncannily real. (I’ll be working hours per/week? And be receiving a salary?).

What I learned from this whole process? Probably too much to put into a small wrap-up paragraph. But I can say this: the ultimate thrill of snatching a job comes at a different time for everyone, but it does come. It’s so hard not to (I mean, look at me), but try not to overanalyze every missed deadline, every email wording, or every step of the process. Simply go with the flow; remain confident that you’ve put forth your best effort, and that you are a fantastic job candidate in your own right. Continue to be proactive, open-minded, and optimistic. And continue to be yourself---in every email exchange, phone call, and interview. Stay true to your skills and passions and what it is that you genuinely love to do.

Well, it’s been a lot of writing, so I guess I’ll end here. Good luck to you all---no matter what stage you’re at in the job process. And in the meantime, enjoy the remainder of this year! We have the rest of our lives to be serious real-world-people, so let’s take in the time at Tufts that we have left.

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