My strategy for a (hopefully) successful #JobHunt
Hunting for a job is tough for all, but even more so for students. As a junior at UC Berkeley, I'm definitely feeling the stress in looking for a summer internship. At Berkeley, the norm for students is to work or intern over the summer after junior year. It's the best way to gain valuable experience and differentiate ourselves from other students when looking for a full-time job in senior year. However as we recruit for that summer position, we must juggle several additional commitments - getting good grades and a high GPA, leading and participating in on-campus organizations, and maintaining both physical and mental health.
Keeping all this in mind, I formulated my personal strategy and advice to recruit for a summer internship (or full-time job) during the coming semester.
Find your passions
This past semester provided me with valuable opportunities to explore various industries and take on different mindsets.
In my digital marketing class, I played the roles of a strategist and a writer; we were entasked with posting three articles on LinkedIn. I met the quota (here, here, and here) but went beyond and wrote four more articles because I enjoyed just sitting down and analyzing about marketing campaigns, technology products, and business strategies. As I received positive responses and constructive criticism, I gained the confidence to write longer, more thoughtful articles.
In my computer security class, I took on the role of a programmer by working on three intensive projects. I thoroughly enjoyed absorbing the information taught in the class, but I struggled to design and implement the code within my projects. I learned a lot from my experience, and simply being a computer science major ensures that I want technology to be a major piece of my future career, but I do not believe I would make a dedicated software developer.
As a brother of the marketing and sales professional fraternity Pi Sigma Epsilon, I became a consultant for the sports retail company Under Armour. I conducted deep research into emerging technologies, surveyed my fellow Berkeley students on their behavior when shopping for clothing, and began to provide recommendations as to how Under Armour could take advantage of our findings. Each step of the way gave me the ability to develop my skills and learn new ones.
As a result of my experiences, I realized that my passions and skills align with three fields -- Business Analysis, Product Management, and Consultancy.
Advice: Take a variety of classes, and get involved on campus. What do you enjoy so much that you can see yourself doing it for a career? Start with that, and let your experiences guide your way. You can always strengthen this passion or find new ones.
Prepare Yourself
I then asked myself, what skills and knowledge do I need to succeed in each field? I personally love LinkedIn, Quora, and Medium to search for answers.
All three fields rely on strategy, analysis, and communication; the best way to learn all three is to learn case frameworks and practice interviews. Product management goes further in that the great product managers have business, technical, and design skills. From this extensive PM guide I found via Medium, I have read about and worked on all three throughout my winter break.
Furthermore, I have researched and created a spreadsheet of the companies offering summer internships in these various fields, along with the link to each application and the deadline. The spreadsheet (via Google Sheets) is bookmarked on my toolbar in my Chrome browser, so that I may consistently check and add to it.
Read more | www.linkedin.com
Keeping all this in mind, I formulated my personal strategy and advice to recruit for a summer internship (or full-time job) during the coming semester.
Find your passions
This past semester provided me with valuable opportunities to explore various industries and take on different mindsets.
In my digital marketing class, I played the roles of a strategist and a writer; we were entasked with posting three articles on LinkedIn. I met the quota (here, here, and here) but went beyond and wrote four more articles because I enjoyed just sitting down and analyzing about marketing campaigns, technology products, and business strategies. As I received positive responses and constructive criticism, I gained the confidence to write longer, more thoughtful articles.
In my computer security class, I took on the role of a programmer by working on three intensive projects. I thoroughly enjoyed absorbing the information taught in the class, but I struggled to design and implement the code within my projects. I learned a lot from my experience, and simply being a computer science major ensures that I want technology to be a major piece of my future career, but I do not believe I would make a dedicated software developer.
As a brother of the marketing and sales professional fraternity Pi Sigma Epsilon, I became a consultant for the sports retail company Under Armour. I conducted deep research into emerging technologies, surveyed my fellow Berkeley students on their behavior when shopping for clothing, and began to provide recommendations as to how Under Armour could take advantage of our findings. Each step of the way gave me the ability to develop my skills and learn new ones.
As a result of my experiences, I realized that my passions and skills align with three fields -- Business Analysis, Product Management, and Consultancy.
Advice: Take a variety of classes, and get involved on campus. What do you enjoy so much that you can see yourself doing it for a career? Start with that, and let your experiences guide your way. You can always strengthen this passion or find new ones.
Prepare Yourself
I then asked myself, what skills and knowledge do I need to succeed in each field? I personally love LinkedIn, Quora, and Medium to search for answers.
All three fields rely on strategy, analysis, and communication; the best way to learn all three is to learn case frameworks and practice interviews. Product management goes further in that the great product managers have business, technical, and design skills. From this extensive PM guide I found via Medium, I have read about and worked on all three throughout my winter break.
Furthermore, I have researched and created a spreadsheet of the companies offering summer internships in these various fields, along with the link to each application and the deadline. The spreadsheet (via Google Sheets) is bookmarked on my toolbar in my Chrome browser, so that I may consistently check and add to it.
Read more | www.linkedin.com