Looking for a little advice.

[jamieboy77]

First of all, thank you to all on the forum for the great advice to do with the interview process.

Now the main part.

I have been given an offer of sponsorship from Clyde Marine for Glasgow College but have now received an e-mail from Princess for an interview. Without knowing what it is like to sail yet with a company I was basically wondering is it worth simply getting my training done then try and get who I want or should I see if I can go with Princess? (my clyde offer would expire before princess interview as well)

[ETwhat?]

Its a hard one, you could take clydes offer and then just dump them but if you have signed the contract they can charge upto ?3000 if you decide to leave, partly as if they failed to replace you with a cadet for that year they have to make a payment to a training fund so its not just about fees etc

Obviously you can gamble and go for princess but you must have thought that Clyde was acceptable when you applied to them and you will get the qualification you want at the end of it.

Personally I would accept Clyde and hope they drag their feet in getting the paperwork out to you then if you have only accepted an offer and not signed a contract you would be able to leave if an interview turns into a better offer.

[jamieboy77]

Well they want a filled out sponsor form sent back with the acceptance letter so that they can fill in the blanks so maybe just send the acceptance?

[ETwhat?]

If they have sent you everything and asked for it returned then there's no point sending them bits and pieces, there should be a training agreement which requires many signatures you, and a guardian then clyde and a sponsor. that's the bit that binds you to them. if they are just asking for a list of your preferred sponsors then its a bit different.
if you have got the contract bit then its the decision time (you may manage to break it without problems) but basically if you accept their offer that's it

[Hatchorder]

How about trying a little honesty here?

Why not ring Clyde, tell them you have an Interview with Princess, ask them if they will defer your acceptance until a few days after your Princess interview to enable you to make a choice that is informed? The worst they can say is "We need a decision now" in which case you can make a fresh decision based on what you know and not what you think.

Also it is very unlikely that the Company would come after you for ?3,000 unless you had already started your cadetship. They will have reserves, right up until college week, and will just fill your space. They may even let you sign and retract without penalty if you accept an offer from Princess, but get that in writing from them.

Can I just say that my experience of those I have chatted to and emailed in Trainning Companies have all been extremely nice and helpful. They are humans and not Ogre's and if you just tried to have a straight and honest conversation with them I am sure they would be understanding.

Hope this helps.

Ian