If I become a PiLA finalist, am I guaranteed a placement?

No. PiLA accepts a finalist pool larger than the number of placements available in anticipation of attrition as some applicants pursue other opportunities, and in order to give our partners the opportunity to interview several candidates for a post, should they wish to do so. We make our very best effort to guarantee interviews for all those finalists who continue in the process, but our partners make the final hiring decisions, and we stand by them in that.