Federal jury duty at the same time as interview? :-(

[P5YcH010gy]

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So I've been called to serve on Federal jury duty for two weeks. I actually don't really mind it. I start tomorrow morning.

The bad news: I just got invited to an interview at one of my personal top programs, and it's for Friday, February 5th. This is the last day of my jury duty term.

Should I go tomorrow morning and talk to the clerk and see if (s)he thinks I could get my serving in before the last day if possible? Since it's Federal Court, I'm not sure how lenient they'll be.

Or should I email back the school with "yes, I'll accept-- but there's this jury duty thing you should know about..." I'm worried that telling the school about it and having to move/reschedule/whatever the interview will hurt my chances.

What do you guys think is the best way to approach this?

 

[Featheredwyngs]

So I've been called to serve on Federal jury duty for two weeks. I actually don't really mind it. I start tomorrow morning.

The bad news: I just got invited to an interview at one of my personal top programs, and it's for Friday, February 5th. This is the last day of my jury duty term.

Should I go tomorrow morning and talk to the clerk and see if (s)he thinks I could get my serving in before the last day if possible? Since it's Federal Court, I'm not sure how lenient they'll be.

Or should I email back the school with "yes, I'll accept-- but there's this jury duty thing you should know about..." I'm worried that telling the school about it and having to move/reschedule/whatever the interview will hurt my chances.

What do you guys think is the best way to approach this?

What school is it? One of my Feb. 5th Clinical Phd program schools would not switch the date for me. However, one other Feb. 5th Clinical Phd program school has an alternate date available - which they'll schedule you for if you ask (but they aren't advertising it in the email they sent out). If it's that school I'll tell you and you can call them. If it's not.... I'm not sure what's the best way to advise you. Try the federal court first, and if they aren't flexible - then tell the school about the conflict. They should understand it's not something that you can just cancel.

 

[Sassafrass]

The method depends on jurisdiction but all jury duty can be rescheduled, as long as you have a justified reason. Some jurisdictions have you submit in writing, whereas others you can log-on to your account and with a few clicks online you can have it rescheduled (and get a choice of 3-4 dates to pick from) in under a minute. I know I had to do this for jury duty when I had a work conflict in another state and my options where "I'll be out of town", "Financial hardship", "Childcare issues" and a few others. Good thing is that the school interview will indeed get you out of town!

Since most jurisdictions are moving to an automated system, rescheduling is typically painless. Check with your clerk first, then check with the school for alternative dates before you tell the school "I want to but..."

 

[mll03]

The method depends on jurisdiction but all jury duty can be rescheduled, as long as you have a justified reason. Some jurisdictions have you submit in writing, whereas others you can log-on to your account and with a few clicks online you can have it rescheduled (and get a choice of 3-4 dates to pick from) in under a minute. I know I had to do this for jury duty when I had a work conflict in another state and my options where "I'll be out of town", "Financial hardship", "Childcare issues" and a few others. Good thing is that the school interview will indeed get you out of town!

Since most jurisdictions are moving to an automated system, rescheduling is typically painless. Check with your clerk first, then check with the school for alternative dates before you tell the school "I want to but..."

I was not aware that you could reschedule jury duty. Good to know..

 

[buzzworm]

I was not aware that you could reschedule jury duty. Good to know..

Just wanted to warn you that it's probably worth trying to reschedule early -- don't assume that you'll definitely be able to reschedule and do it the day before. I had jury duty last year and was planning to reschedule it, only to discover that I wasn't allowed to. Apparently they had sent me a notification a long time earlier that I never received, so in their system I was considered to have skipped my previous date -- which made me ineligible to reschedule.

 

[P5YcH010gy]

Hey guys-- thanks for the suggestions. I mentioned the conflict in my acceptance email to the school, and the wonderful advisor mentioned that there had been a cancellation for an interview on the 19th, so she moved me to that date. Pain-free, and I didn't even have to anger old Uncle Sam.

As an aside, since it's Federal jury duty, a simple hardship excuse thing probably wouldn't have worked-- you have to be living in Guatemala or dead to defer your duty, I feel like.

Anyway, problem solved, and I get to go serve this week. Thanks!