amateur survival guide to recruiting season

[Use at your own risk. You may not win, but you can survive.]

Welp. That concludes take two!

After a truly exhausting day, I’ve finished my last two (of four) interviews and had my final 'pre-night' (post-interview). Now, all I can do is wait. If I don’t hear back, that means spring recruiting. Do you know what’s worse than recruiting? Having to do it again cause you failed the first time.

But I am thankful for the peace and assurance I’ve gotten from Christ in this time. Do your best, and God will do the rest, right? No use worrying about things you have truly no control over.

But with that, here are some general tips from someone who doesn’t have an internship offer for next summer. Take what you will!

1. Find out what you’re interested in. This means, going to any company info session that you’re even remotely curious about. Even if it’s not the best company, it’s always good to learn more about different industries and what those individuals like. My favorite questions for information sessions are : What aspect of your day-to-day work do you enjoy the most? And What is your passion and how do you see it in your work, or how do you pursue it outside of work?
2. Talk to recruiters. I realized that for all the interviews I actually got invites for, I had talked with a recruiter, either through information sessions or at career fairs. “Networking”, my friends. I used to think it was extremely meaningless and so superficial, but there’s truly so much you can learn when talking to recruiters: how did they decide to choose this career/company? What have they learned since graduating and working professionally? What makes them stay at their company? Where do they see themselves going next? Wait in line, I know it’s long, but wait in line. Think up some awesome question while you’re at it.
3. Do your research. I might just be a super nerd, but I love learning about different industries, the trends that are affecting it, and how companies and brands are reacting. (I've been brainwashed). BUT, learning about these topics allow you to form really strong questions for recruiters and interviewers to answer: How are disruptive business models affecting your company's ability to maintain prices and loyalty to brands? And it's always fun to learn something new.
4. Go pee first. HA. Now that’s some quality advice. I was actually told this by a friend my freshman year (shoutout to AH). But it’s really great. I usually hydrate myself while prepping, but right before you go to a career fair or right before an interview (this also works before presentations), go pee. It’s supposed to be stress relieving!

That's all for now, folks!

10.21.15
junior day #60