Tag Archives: Job Search
In an Intern Search, Timing is Everything
The summer is a popular time for students to pursue internships. Just like any other job search, timing plays a key role in whether or not a student will land a sought after position. Here is my insight on the recruiting process and what students should know to help prepare them for a successful job search.
In an Ideal WorldâŠ
You are a student looking for a summer job, you read a job description, love the details of the position, meet all the requirements, and submit your application. Then, you wait for that phone call where an employer tells you that you are a perfect match and they want you to start ASAP!
In the Real WorldâŠ
The same scenario could play out many ways:
1. You find an ideal job, apply, get called for an interview, and hopefully land the position. This is …
Interview Like a S.T.A.R.
Entry by Pat Patterson
From the January 2011 INTERNnetwork:
In internship interviews, employers commonly ask behavioral interview questions that focus on past events in your life and your responses. Since a student will typically not have much work experience, behavioral interview questions are open-ended questions that focus on past performances to assess behavior â in particular, how you may respond to similar situations in the future. âCan you tell me about a goal you accomplished at a previous job?â is an example of a behavioral interview question.
Since behavioral interview questions are open-ended, they can be difficult to answer. Therefore, you need to be prepared. The S.T.A.R. technique for interviewing is a method for thoroughly answering behavioral interview questions. Using the S.T.A.R. technique, you describe your actions in past situations to answer behavioral questions.Â
S.T.A.R. is an acronym for Situation, Task, Action, Result.
Situation â Provide some …
Students: How Many Hats Can You Wear?
Entry by Pat Patterson
In todayâs workplace, employers are placing more emphasis on an employee’s ability to multi-taskâŠand I donât just mean texting and talking at the same time. A diverse collection of workspace-related skills may increase your likeliness of landing your dream job. According to research from Robert Half International, multi-tasking is a prominent attribute desired for the hottest jobs of 2011:
âThe common thread among the jobs highlighted in our research is that they help businesses improve efficiency and profits, and foster a more positive customer experience,” said Max Messmer, chairman and CEO of Robert Half International. “The most successful job candidates bring multiple skill sets, a track record of success and a strong sense of accountability to their roles.â
Read more.
Knowing this information, at your current or upcoming internship, you may want to ask your supervisor for opportunities that may enhance any …
Networking to the Right Internship for YOU
Entry by Nicole Goble, Director of Recruiting and Development in the financial services industry in Zionsville, IN
Each month I have the opportunity to take someone from within our office (staff or financial representative) for breakfast and interview them for the monthly newsletter I write. It is a neat deal; I ask them 5 pretty simple questions for the newsletter and spend the rest of the time focusing on them, how their business is going and what is new personally. This week I sat down with a representative that has been with our company for 10 years and has really been a huge benefit to me as a recruiter; therefore, we talked recruiting for a good portion of the breakfast. He told me a story about a former representative that found his dream job using our sales cycle. It was so simple but so astounding, how had …
Questions to Consider when Interning during the School Year
Entry by Valerie Petrey, Public Relations & Event Planning Intern, Purdue Liberal Arts Career Development
Most of us intern during the summer because itâs less stressful â no classes, club meetings, group projects, etc. However, with the workforce being highly competitive, itâs good to be open to the possibility of interning the semester you plan to graduate.
If youâre a December graduate and have time to spare, interning in the spring is a great idea because not as many people are applying to internships then. If you are graduating in May, like me, you should still consider doing an internship during your last semester. Last semester internships are your final opportunities to show employers what youâve learned while attending college, and what you can contribute as a full-time employee at their company. Employers are more likely to hire someone they have seen working in action.
Whether youâre graduating this month, …
Letâs Wrap It Up
Entry by Brittney Horn, Membership Intern, Greater Lafayette Commerce
And Iâm not talking gifts here people! Though the holidays are coming up quickly, for some of you that fateful time that your precious internship ends is looming in the near future as well. Yes, I know Iâm excited for all of the traditions I celebrate, but donât let these last few weeks go by without accomplishing any work with your internship! These last few weeks are the time to make all of your hard work count by following these few tips:
Wrap up any projects/assignments you have. Please do not be that intern that leaves unfinished work left for a new intern to finish. Itâs hard enough on your first day at your internship and they really donât need to be tidying up your leftovers. Get a recommendation letter. Any notable intern supervisor will gladly write you …
Passion Trumps Salary When Looking for a Job or Internship
Entry by Valerie Petrey, Public Relations & Event Planning Intern, Purdue Liberal Arts Career Development
When job and internship searching there is one important question we must ask ourselves: am I going to LOVE this position? Salary, benefits, location and values all count when choosing the right position, but passion really trumps them all.
For my current internship with Purdue Liberal Arts Career Development, I conducted a survey, which circulated among liberal arts students. 89.4% of students who responded to the survey (536 students responded) said passion matters most to them in job. I couldnât agree more. While salary and location are also extremely important to my particular job search, passion is by far the number one thing that drives me.
Picture your life one year from now. Do you really want to be sitting at a desk with nothing to do, a boss you donât like …
The Secret to Finding the Perfect Job (Er, Internship)
Entry by Brittney Horn, Membership Intern, Greater Lafayette Commerce
Okay well maybe not the secret because letâs be honest, itâs still really hard to find a job at all. Iâve searched high and low, far and wide for almost a year now and itâs still a rough economy. That doesnât mean that everyone that is graduating within the year is doomed to be jobless for the rest of their lives but it does mean the more experience you have (ahem, internships), the better chance you have of getting a job. But searching for internships can be pretty frightening too. It can be a daunting task to search through websites, internship postings, and company profiles to find the perfect internship. I have become a self-proclaimed âproâ at finding great resources for finding pretty much any kind of internship you can imagine. Hopefully youâll be able to use one …
Interning and Living in Indiana
Entry by Pat Patterson
Have you found an internship that is perfect for you, but you donât know much about the region in Indiana where it is located? Are you only searching for internships in certain cities because you are more familiar with those areas? If so, make sure to check out Indiana INTERNnetâs regional page to learn more about what Indiana cities have to offer, including information about arts and culture, attractions, housing, networking groups, nightlife, restaurants, and shopping â after all, more likely than not, you will be living in the city where you intern.Â
Also, if you have your heart set on interning outside of the state, donât completely disregard what Indiana cities have to offer. For example, according to Yahoo! Real Estate, Indianapolis-Carmel, IN is rated the 10th best city to move in America:
Indianapolis-Carmel ranked high on both stability and affordability. The average home …
Appreciate & Communicate
Entry by Brittney Horn, Membership Intern, Greater Lafayette Commerce
No matter where you work, there is most likely going to be someone that you just donât see eye-to-eye with. Letâs face it â itâs inevitable that you arenât going to get along with every single person you meet in your entire life. In the work place, it is even more prone to happen because you are surrounded by the same people for at least 40 hours a week.
Unless if you are one of those âI get along with everyone all the time no matter whatâ kinds of people (which is rare, and if you are one of those people, I congratulate you) you will experience feelings of frustration with other co-workers. These feelings happen especially when you donât understand where the other person is coming from. This can happen often when you work with people with different types of …
ResearchâŠOr lack thereof
Entry by Nicole Goble, Director of Recruiting and Development in the financial services industry in Zionsville, IN
The biggest mistake students make when applying and interviewing for an internship and/or a full-time position is the effort spent researching the company and the career. We are very lucky to live in a time that allows us to access almost any piece of information we wish at the click of a button â this also leaves little room for employers to empathize with candidates who lack the preparation.Â
There are many ways students search for internships, including and certainly not limited to, career fairs, campus career centers, club and class company presentations, Indiana INTERNnet, and many others. The mistake lies when the proper research is not done prior to applying for these positions and then when getting the first interview, going into that first meeting.Â
To make the best …
The #1 Interview Question: âTell me about yourself.â
Entry by Valerie Petrey, Public Relations & Event Planning Intern, Purdue Liberal Arts Career Development
Preparing for an interview, whether for an internship or job is stressful. Itâs simple to answer questions about yourself, right? The hard part is answering those questions in a way that will convey your specific skill set to an employer.
When answering the infamous question, âtell me about yourself,â you must limit the answer to a minute or two. Also keep in mind your future employer doesnât care about your obsession with the Chicago Cubs, that you like music or if youâre double jointed, UNLESS you can turn those things into experience that would benefit the job you want to do for that employer. In which case it would make you stand out among the hundreds of other candidates.
A fabulous guest speaker came to my class this week and told us the story of …
Interning After Graduation?
Entry by Valerie Petrey, Public Relations & Event Planning Intern, Purdue Liberal Arts Career Development
For those of you job searching with me, this blog is for you!
Regardless of the economy it can be difficult to find a job. Itâs different now because companies have more to lose if their recent hire canât handle the job responsibilities. Letâs say Company X hired âMaryâ on as their copywriter. It appeared that âMaryâ knew how to write and could work under pressure but when she was assigned to produce a brochure for Company X, her writing skills were less than immaculate and she crumbled under time limits.Â
Company Xâs time and money was wasted, and they were forced to let her go and search for a new copywriter. Unfortunately things like this happen in the workforce, which may lead an employer to assume all new grads are like this. This is …
Career Fairs 101: Avoid the Herd Mentality
Entry by Pat Patterson
After attending a few career fairs this fall, it seems like a lot of students attend career fairs with a group of their friends. That in itself poses no problem, but showing up to a career fair with your friends and walking around the career fair with your friends are two different things. What I am getting at is â it is important to navigate your way through a career fair alone.
First off, think about the reasons that you may walk around a career fair in a group. The group acts as a âcrutch.â You may be nervous, unconfident, or unsure who to approach at a career fair, and your friends may make you feel more comfortable. And that is how employers may perceive such a group of students â recruiters may see such students as unconfident, unsure, or unprepared (not necessarily admirable traits for …
Internship Are Not Just for Juniors and Seniors
Entry by Pat Patterson
Although the National Bureau of Economic Research recently announced that the recession ended, this does not mean it will be easier to land a full-time job. Employers will always be looking to hire those competitive candidates who have previous work experience. In fact, according to the Wall Street Journal’s survey of college recruiters, an internship may be one of the best ways to land a full-time job offer.Â
Iâve recently attended a few career fairs where freshmen and sophomores have approached me to learn more about Indiana INTERNnet and ended up surprised to learn that internship opportunities exist for underclassmen.
As many students may not realize, employers are starting to identify a potential future employee as early as a studentâs freshman year:Â
A quarter of the nearly 480 respondents to The Wall Street Journal’s survey of college recruiters said more than 50% of their new-graduate hires had …