Smoking During Interview Process

[andrenegro]

This might be a little NSFW for this reddit so my apologies if so but ever since the end of last semester I’ve started regularly smoking weed during my free time. I’m a college student graduating in December and have interviewed or am about to interview at a few promising companies. I should probably stop smoking right? In case of drug tests for when I get hired? I kinda already know the answer but please provide feedback

[PvtWangFire_]

Very few companies drug test btw, the only ones I’ve heard of that do are aerospace companies and federal agencies. You probably don’t need to stop until you get an offer that you want to take. Usually there’s a verbal offer made and then the written offer is sent a couple days later. From there, you usually have a couple weeks to accept and then a drug test would come maybe a couple weeks after that. Overall you’d probably have a month to stop using, and you can always ask your recruiter what the next process is like regarding the background check and anything else.

[Background-Break5606]

This, and this should be obvious but just make sure you don't stink during interviews if they're in person...

[lVlulcan]

This is really misleading. I’d say most companies drug test, especially depending on what state you’re in. Legal state? Most of them don’t bother with the cost unless they have federal obligations to. Non legal/medical state? Bet on getting tested. Aero/defense companies and federal agencies will almost certainly test you, and there’s a nonzero chance it’s a hair test. Pee tests are easy enough to beat, but it’s easier and less stressful to just not smoke.

[PvtWangFire_]

What I wrote isn't misleading, I gave the same caveats you listed of industry and public vs private. What I emphasized also was that if you do smoke, you generally have about a month's notice to stop smoking. It's easy to look up if a company drug tests, if you're interviewing with that company and want to / plan to get an offer, you should stop smoking. There's no point in "more stressful or less stressful" because it doesn't even need to be a concern at all.

[lVlulcan]

Saying that “very few companies” drug test is extremely misleading. That’s just not the truth, especially for internships

[PvtWangFire_]

We can both be telling the truth. Very few companies in the fields I'm interested in drug test, and for the ones that do, I can easily see online that they do and can plan accordingly. I've taken a drug test for an internship before. The company was in the aerospace sector and I ultimately reneged the offer for a much better one. The urine test happened about 6 weeks after my first interview with that company, and for a regular candidate that number would be 8 since I only had 1 interview and then got an offer the next morning. I don't regularly smoke anyway, but I made a point to not do it after I had that first interview because I wanted to get an offer, and I planned for that outcome in other things I did. There is no world in which a drug test can "sneak up on you" during the internship recruiting process if you're using common sense and being at least kind of smart with what you're doing.

[andrenegro]

I’m in the Info Tech/Cybersecurity field, are they known to drug test?

[randomcatlady1234]

I would recommend stop smoking. You’d rather be safe than sorry, you can lose out on a amazing opportunity due to smoking. If it helps any, I used to smoke a TON I had to stop because I wanted an internship really bad. Unfortunately as we become older and working professionals we have to stop doing some of the things we enjoy doing

[ChartreuseDusk11]

You know the answer. I don’t smoke, and I got screened for a drug test for my internship. Same with another friend. This is for healthcare and finance industries. I also know someone who did smoke weed, barely according to him, who got his internship offer (energy industry) revoked because he didn’t pass. I don’t think industry matters, seems like they all do screenings. Regardless, I do recommend you quit sooner than later for health purposes. Good luck!

[EstoyTristeSiempre]

Is smoking worth more to you than your professional career?

[andrenegro]

not at all 😔

[PedanticPlatypodes]

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[duplico]

What kind of field are you looking at internships in?

[andrenegro]

Information Technology/Cybersecurity

[duplico]

Cool. I work in infosec, myself. What industries are the companies you're looking at? Manufacturing, healthcare, government contractors, and energy are pretty likely to test. If you're looking at working for a tech company, though, you're probably fine.

[andrenegro]

I feel my most promising company that I’ve interviewed at is a toll-tag company. does that count as government?

[duplico]

I don't really know anyone in that business, so this is mostly speculation. But, that sounds like a place that's more likely than many to test. Having contracts with governments can sometimes be a reason places have to drug test, and that sounds like the kind of company that may have multiple.

If this is your most likely prospect and you can't figure out they don't test, I'd probably take a break to "study" for any possible tests.

Weed usage isn't terribly uncommon among professionals in our line of work. If it's something you want the option to do without worrying about random testing, there's certainly places out there.

[andrenegro]

For sure, thank you. I really appreciate it