A personal recount of a life within Berlin, Venice and the EU

Tuesday, December 10, 2013

When taking one position feels like coming to terms with what you are worth of, i.e. good

Dear Ms _________, I would like to come back to the offer I received from ASEF for the position I applied for. Once more I would like to stress the fact that we have had an open and constructive dialogue throughout the application procedure, which I held in high respect: this mail tries to develop that openness further. Ms ______ and Mr _______ read in :cc ( though I know that the first is currently on leave). After having attentively evaluated your financial offer (and the related conditions), discussed living costs and rentals´ situation with acquaintances living in Singapore, considered the profile of the person you had been looking for in your opening, and - last but not least - after having considered my profile and my previous professional experience, I came to the conclusion that the income you offer does not correspond to the expectations I would have for a such a position. For as much as I am willing and excited by the idea of moving to Asia and developing the projects of the Foundation, discovering a new and vibrant culture and getting to know new colleagues and friends, I do not find appropriate the kind of living arrangements I would need to undergo if working (full time) at ASEF under your offer. I am aware of the fact that I would need to share a flat with some other people, but still it would be a matter of how much I would need to share. Furthermore, together with the costs of living, one has also to consider additional health benefits costs, travel costs (at least once a year a flight way and back to Europe, I reckon), pension founds, savings and so on. I am not sure whether there is room for negotiating the salary with ASEF, i.e. with you or any other person in the Foundation; in case there was such room, I would be willing to discuss any job offer entailing an income ranging from ___ to _______ thousand Singapore dollars (gross). I am fully aware that this request would represent at least an increase of more than a third of your initial offer; still, after a long consultation with friends and an extensive internet search I am confident that this request does not look too high or unfair if compared with living conditions in Singapore for a 33-years old professional with almost 7 years of experience in educational programmes. I hope that ASEF will be as open to discuss the issue as I have been in reviewing my profile and qualifications in the past weeks with you. If not, I do not want to prevent the Foundation from selecting another employer in due time. I thank you for your attention and hope to hear form you soon, either way. Let me finally wish you a nice day. With very kind regards from Berlin

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