Piddly Details

Thought I would share a little of what goes into putting together a recruitment trip like this. The trip looks great (and fairly simple) on the finished itinerary, but there is a lot of annoying logistical hoo-ha that goes into getting it that way.

For example:

1. Registering for organized tours and conferences. There are many operators out there who organize tours in different geographical areas, then invite reps from various colleges and universities to sign on and participate. Hotels and flights have been found, but not booked. The rep still has to handle that in most cases. School visits, information sessions, and college fairs have already been set-up in various different locations. I will be taking part in two of these. The first is during my stay in Mumbai and is organized by The International Center for Education, or ICE. The second covers all my Middle East stops and is organized by the US Educational Group, or USEG. As you can tell, these operators have real snazzy, descriptive names. Typically, all the reps travel together, eat together, and generally spend free time together, along with a "tour guide" who may or may not be the one who actually organized the tour. Often there are outside activities built into the schedule. For instance, in Egypt on my last trip, we were taken on a tour of the pyramids. In India there were tours of New Delhi and Mumbai (I missed the Taj Mahal trip!). Conferences are stationary and typically much larger, sometimes with hundreds of exhibitors. This is what I'll be attending in Madrid and Paris; nation-sized educational expos. Added details for these include advertising in the conference handbook, choosing the size and shape of your exhibit, additional picking furniture and visual aids, etc.
2. Booking Flights. Ok, so now I know where I'm going, but not how I'm getting there, other than flights suggested by tour operators. What I do is check out Expedia for flights, make a list of suspects, and send them with a rough itinerary of events to the university travel office. Having our own in-house agents is great. I usually work with Maggie, and we finagle things 'til it all works out right. On this trip I think I'll actually be Eurailing it also, between Spain, Portugal, and France.
3. Hotel Reservations. Now I find a place to put my head down between events and flights. Again, tour operators have places picked out, but it is up to me to confirm. For non-tour stuff, it's all me. I like to find places where I can rack up points of some kind. I prefer making reservations through e-mail or fax, especially when dealing with hotel staff speaking English as a second, third, or fourth language. It helps in avoiding miscommunications. Hotels will often offer to send an airport pick-up, usually at a price many times that of catching a normal cab. In India I usually forego this, but you better bet they are sending me a shuttle in Beirut.
4. Sending Materials. This is simply sending all the stuff I will need to promote the university ahead of me, whether it be to a hotel, a tour organizer, a school, or some other location. I have to judge what I think I will need, how much of it, pack it, and then Caprice in Distribution sends it. This can be more intricate than it seems. There are dozens of different publications about the university, and shipping overseas ain't cheap, which brings me to...
5. Paying for Stuff. Of course I must document every dollar that I spend. So for all this stuff above there is paperwork. Sometimes it must be completed before the trip, for things which require payment in advance. Other times it is after - all that stuff I put on the AmEx while traveling.
6. Visas. No, Ms. Hilton, this does not refer to the credit cards. For some countries you must apply for special permission to enter, pay a fee, and get a stamp in your passport. Luckily, for India I already obtained a 5 year pass, and the Middle Eastern countries allow visas to be bought in the airport (unless you have an Israeli stamp in your passport). European countries generally don't require one for American, but at the rate our popularity is plunging overseas, you never know.
7. Scheduling appointments. When not part of a tour, reps must call or write ahead and set up all appointments with schools, etc. With time differences, there is usually a one day gap between any correspondence (when I start work it is 7pm in India), not to mention that prompt responses are not held in high regard all round the world. Sometimes I wait weeks. Sometimes I never hear back. Then when you do hear back, it seems everyone wants to schedule you at the same time. Go figure.
8. Corresponding with students. This goes on all the time, but is especially important before a trip. Reps want to let their students know that they will be in the area and there is a chance to meet directly, at a fair or school. There might even be time set aside to meet one-on-one with certain prospective students who need specific info.
9. Packing and wrapping things up at home. Finally there is the physical preparation for the journey. I won't give you a packing list, don't worry. There are also such concerns as making sure your mail is taken care of, your bills will be paid, your home is secure, and your friends know you are going away for awhile and haven't just decided to ignore their calls for two months. Oh yeah, and leave a pull-list at the comic book store.
10. Last meal. I was so close to ten items I had to make one more up. On my last day or two in town I make a tour of my favorite places. Guinness at Mercury Lounge, coin-op Galaga at the Jinx, Lucas Burger at B&D, etc. I'll be going through a lot of curry and hummus before I get any more of my local faves.

I promise that was the most boring post you will read 'til the end of my trip. Now at least you know the prep work that goes into this.