Employer - Work experience request - was I too rude

gibson123

I received an e-mail today from a student of an FE college today, she said - I am doing Business Admin and IT, and would like work experience. How do I apply?

My reply is download application from website (link given) and follow instructions.

She replied can you just send me an application form please? -

my reply was no sorry we do not have the resources to do this, unless of course there is a good reason (e.g a disability) that prevents you from doing this yourself.

Her reply - There's nothing wrong with me, I don't understand why you don't just send me an application form?

Me - sorry, you have to follow the application process, A business and administration student should find that straight-forward.

Her - That's out of order! Why don't you just do your job? I am only applying for work experience not a job. THANKS!! HAVE A NICE DAY

Me - Sorry - what is out of order is that you are not prepared to follow simple instructions. If you followed the instructions, you would see that you would return the completed application to me for consideration. It is not my job to find you work experience. The impression you have given me so far is that you are lazy and petulant, I suggest you modify your approach before asking another employer for work experience. Good luck with your studies and HAVE A NICE DAY! :mad::mad:

paddedjohn

Nice response and well done for holding back.

Ariadna

No, you weren't rude, in fact you were very restrained!

denla

She's lazy, unwilling to spend money on printing the application form and posting it.

gibson123

I've been feeling terrible ever since, I was so mad and it's unlike me to just send an e-mail reply like that.

LittleVoice

gibson123 wrote: »

I received an e-mail today from a student of an FE college today, she said - I am doing Business Admin and IT, and would like work experience. How do I apply?

My reply is download application from website (link given) and follow instructions.

She replied can you just send me an application form please? -

my reply was no sorry we do not have the resources to do this, unless of course there is a good reason (e.g a disability) that prevents you from doing this yourself.

Her reply - There's nothing wrong with me, I don't understand why you don't just send me an application form?

Me - sorry, you have to follow the application process, A business and administration student should find that straight-forward.

Her - That's out of order! Why don't you just do your job? I am only applying for work experience not a job. THANKS!! HAVE A NICE DAY

Me - Sorry - what is out of order is that you are not prepared to follow simple instructions. If you followed the instructions, you would see that you would return the completed application to me for consideration. It is not my job to find you work experience. The impression you have given me so far is that you are lazy and petulant, I suggest you modify your approach before asking another employer for work experience. Good luck with your studies and HAVE A NICE DAY! :mad::mad:

As you have taken time to post here, perhaps you could also take the time to contact the FE college and let them know how one of their students has behaved.

Perhaps she thought there would be a separate form to complete as she wasn't looking for immediate employment. Your initial reply might not have made it clear that it would be the same process - unless you do happen to have separate forms available on your website.

What is your role in the organisation? How did she get your email address? That probably meant she had some initiative to get moving on finding her own work placement but clearly the communication deteriorated to the point that she wrote herself out of a place with your organisation (or any other where she behaved in the same way).

gibson123

denla wrote: »

She's lazy, unwilling to spend money on printing the application form and posting it.

She wouldn't need to print it, I got the student application specially adapted so that it could be edited once downloaded and returned by e-mail!

timbo58

I wouldn't have replied after her 'whats wrong with me' outburst.
After all if she wishes to waste her own time that's fair enough: she isn't entitled to waste your (employers) time also with her attitude problem.

Reading between the lines her attitude smacks of 'I'm offering my work for nothing -all employers should fall over themselves to get me for free!' rather than 'work experience means taking paid staff off their own (useful & productive) work to supply what is effectively a community service for free IMHO.

poet123

I place students for such courses and if one of them had told me of this exchange I would have been very annoyed that they had not had the courtesy to follow your instructions.

I predict she will not tell her tutor, so if you have the details of which college she studies at it may benefit her and other students if you contacted them and explained why she is not being considered for work experience with your company.

whitewing

I think your final reply could have been worded differently to make the same point without actually calling someone lazy and petulant. And you should have left off the Have a nice day because that was sinking to her level. I think you could have said that the purpose of work experience is to get a taste of working life and completing the application form is a very good start in that.

Anyway, what is done is done. Unless you are prepared to send a follow up email that says you felt that your reply may not have come across as constructively as you meant it to, what else can you do?

You could resend the link with an apology and say that you feel that we got off on the wrong footing, but you would welcome the work experience application from her and that you would be pleased to consider it. It would be a good life lesson to her to actually get a chance and have to think about applying professionally rather than just writing you/your company off.

Evilm

Fine from where I'm standing. little madam..