The waiting period prior to receiving a response varies with your position in the queue of interviews. If you were the final interview, you may receive a response rather quickly. However, if you were the first of the interviews, you may need to wait several weeks.

Rejection: Typically arrives by snail mail or by email.
Neutral or no news: You are still in consideration, but not the first choice.
Offer: Typically given over the phone.

If you receive a verbal offer, be gracious and enthusiastic, but do not accept the offer on the spot even if you are planning to do so. Request the offer in writing and time to consider it, especially if you are waiting to hear from other potential employers.

Do your homework

The first step in any negotiation is to be prepared to negotiate. Like in all other aspects of the interview process, do your homework. Know that most everything is negotiable, to some degree or another, including salary, start-up package, space, relocation, support, etc.

Resources

• The WetFeet Insider Guide to Negotiating Your Salary and Perks by WetFeet (firm)
• Academic Scientists at Work: Negotiating a Faculty Position  by Jeremy M. Boss & Susan H. Eckert
• Salary Negotiation for Faculty Jobs by American Psychological Association
• Go Ahead, Haggle by Rebecca A. Bryant & Amber Marks
• Negotiating a Better Deal by Julie Miller Vick & Mary Morris Heiberger
• On the Job Market? Don't Sell Yourself Short, Even Now by Audrey Williams June
• 15 Rules for Negotiating a Job Offer by Harvard Business Review
• Negotiating for a Faculty Position by UCSF
• Academic Job Offer Negotiation from the University of Washington Career Center
• Evaluating Academic Job Offers and Negotiating Positions webinar from the NIH Office of Intramural Training & Education
• Negotiation in Academia webinar by the Higher Education Recruitment Consortia

Salary data

• Chronicle Data Salary Survey - The Chronicle of Higher Education
• Academic Salary Data - Higher Ed Jobs