It\u2019s about that time that many of us are having to go through the arduous process of interview after interview to secure that summer internship or post-grad job. While I\u2019m sure we\u2019ve all gone through numerous websites finding out the best tips to nail our interviews, there\u2019s often a piece of information that is missing: salary negotiations. Many college students probably don\u2019t realize that\u2019s something we might have to do this early in our careers. That is true for a lot of companies who provide more of a fixed salary for internships and starting positions, however not all. And regardless, it\u2019s an important skill we should all have under our belts.<\/p>\n
You first want to do your research and know what the going rate for the position is in general, and the company. Glassdoor<\/a> is a great resource that not only provides these ranges of numbers, but also allows you to calculate your personal estimated salary based on your experiences. Once you\u2019re well-versed on the options, you\u2019ll want to pick a number towards the higher end of that range. It\u2019s important to negotiate a higher number than you\u2019re expecting to take because the employer will almost certainly negotiate down. Using an exact number also shows that you\u2019re confident and have done the proper research and is therefore less likely to be turned down. Know your worth and what you are and are not willing to settle for. Timing is also everything when it comes to bringing up the topic– make sure it\u2019s appropriate. A good time is usually at the end of the actual interview and the interview towards the end of the whole process. It should not<\/em> be the first question you bring up. When you do bring it up, make sure you exude confidence, but with a good balance of politeness and kindness. You\u2019ll also need to back up any request with proof of your abilities so there\u2019s some credibility and incentive to agree. Understand that there\u2019s probably going to be a \u201cno\u201d at least once throughout the negotiation, so don\u2019t be afraid of it, that\u2019s how negotiations work. Just ask questions and learn more about what makes up the numbers so you can continue to work on your part.<\/p>\n I also want to highlight the importance of anti-discrimination laws when it comes to pay. One of the most well-known is probably the Equal Pay Act of 1963. Basically, this ensures that all employees are free from any discrimination based on sex, race, disability, etc. when it comes to their compensation. However, equal pay is still an issue today that affects underrepresented groups. For instance, the current gender wage gap is 82 percent. This means that, generally, women make $0.82 for every $1 men make. Historically, women and BIPOC have been treated as lesser than their male counterparts and not given the same opportunities for jobs and salaries. In turn, this has created a lack of confidence over the years to negotiate more fair deals. This is why it\u2019s so important to do research and make sure you\u2019re adequately getting paid. That leads me to a topic that has been usually thought of as taboo: discussing your salary with your coworkers<\/a>. As scary and rude as it might seem, it\u2019s actually imperative for identifying biases in the workplace. The conversation doesn\u2019t have to be as tough as you think it is, though. As long as it\u2019s open and sincere, and you emphasize the benefits to both parties engaged, the conversation can be as seamless as possible. Just make sure not to make it about the person in a way that comes off as gossip– that\u2019s not fun for anyone.<\/p>\n The last few notes I want to make revolve around later negotiations and how to accept\/decline. If you don\u2019t have to negotiate your salary in the beginning of your job, there will always be that chance where you\u2019ll have to, say, after a year of working there. You\u2019ll have to make the initiative yourself, since your boss can\u2019t exactly read your mind, and schedule a proper meeting to discuss. Again, you\u2019ll need to make sure that the proposed salary is in the appropriate range of the job. Tell your boss why<\/em> it\u2019s worth investing more money into you: your strengths, accomplishments, etc. Also consider alternatives for a salary increase, like vacation days or other benefits. When it does come time to accept or decline the offer, make sure first that it\u2019s in writing, but also that you\u2019re sure you want to accept it. The prospective employer will probably give you a deadline to accept\/decline and should also give you directions on how. If you\u2019re waiting for another company\u2019s offer and are unsure when you\u2019ll receive it, you should communicate with both companies and let them know (it won\u2019t hurt you).<\/p>\n Talking about money is often a sensitive and uncomfortable topic for many people. But, there are so many resources at Syracuse to help people begin to increase their confidence about their personal finances. If you ever find yourself wanting to learn more, you can always make an appointment with a Smart Money Coach<\/a> on Orange Success, or email us at finlit@syr.edu.<\/p>\n Written by Stella Miller \u201921, Whitman School of Management, Smart Money Coach<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" It\u2019s about that time that many of us are having to go through the arduous process of interview after interview to secure that summer internship or post-grad job. While I\u2019m sure we\u2019ve all gone through numerous websites finding out the best tips to nail our interviews, there\u2019s often a piece of information that is missing:…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":319,"featured_media":1699,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[34],"tags":[54,42,86],"class_list":["post-1692","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-student-success","tag-career","tag-smart-money-coach","tag-tips"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/experience.syracuse.edu\/the-peel\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1692","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/experience.syracuse.edu\/the-peel\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/experience.syracuse.edu\/the-peel\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/experience.syracuse.edu\/the-peel\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/319"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/experience.syracuse.edu\/the-peel\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1692"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/experience.syracuse.edu\/the-peel\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1692\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1701,"href":"https:\/\/experience.syracuse.edu\/the-peel\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1692\/revisions\/1701"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/experience.syracuse.edu\/the-peel\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1699"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/experience.syracuse.edu\/the-peel\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1692"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/experience.syracuse.edu\/the-peel\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1692"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/experience.syracuse.edu\/the-peel\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1692"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}Understanding Discrepancies<\/h2>\n
Thinking Forward<\/h2>\n