The fall semester is a challenge - coming back to school after a summer off, it can be hard to get right back into the swing of things. Vacations, barbecues, parties, trips... there are lots of things to keep you out of the studying mindset for a few months and that can bleed into the fall semester.
Unfortunately, lots of companies will have selected their summer interns by the time you've read the syllabus for all of your classes. This means that you've got some work to do to secure your dream job. Here are a few tips to hit the ground running.
Unfortunately, lots of companies will have selected their summer interns by the time you've read the syllabus for all of your classes. This means that you've got some work to do to secure your dream job. Here are a few tips to hit the ground running.
#1: Figure out what you want.
If you're a freshman, you can learn a lot about companies you might like to work for at this point - there are definitely internships out there for after your freshman year, but if you don't feel like you're ready, you can still also collect lots of information. As a sophomore, next summer might seem like a long way away, but it's important to consider if you're going to want an internship - if so, you should start preparing now. If you're a junior, this is really the time to be thinking about internships. Setting reasonable goals and expectations for yourself now can help you plan for the next few months.#2: Start your resume now.
You can always update it later. If you get something started right away, you'll already have a starting point when you're asked for a resume. You can iterate on this, but try to have even just a rough draft as soon as you can. You can come up with a basic resume just by listing your school, relevant experience, and student organizations; you can polish it later before submitting it to companies (but be sure to avoid these common mistakes).#3: Learn about your reputation.
Set your browser to incognito mode / private browsing mode and see what you can find out about yourself. Use a search engine to search for your name. See what you can learn about yourself on social media sites. Prospective employers will do the same, so make sure that there are no red flags - you've still got time at this point to fix things (or at least make those party pics private).#4: Watch for job fairs.
The school where I'm teaching holds its first job fair at the end of September. Find out when the first one for your school is and take a look at the companies that will be there. Even if there aren't any that you're interested in, it can be a good place to practice talking to recruiters. It can also be a great place to have some questions answered - lots of the company attendees will give you advice on the skills they look for, what their interview process is like, or what classes you should consider taking if you want to stand out.#5: Research the companies you're interested in.
Make sure you understand their timelines for interns and new grad hires. Some hire late into the spring semester, but more and more are done with their recruiting season by the end of November. Use one of the many calendar applications available and set some reminders so you don't miss any deadlines. Do some research to understand what they look for in new recruits - for larger companies you can usually find a blog post or an internship review with a quick search.#6: Network.
Lots of your professors have professional connections. You might have family friends who are in the industry, or you might just meet somebody at a party who's already interning. Building our your professional network can help make the difference between "we will keep your resume on file" or landing an interview. There's a good chance that a recruiter will check LinkedIn to see if they know somebody who knows you, so do your best to establish connections where you can.#7: Get ready to interview.
Look at the job description to understand the skills necessary for the position - try to brush up on them. You can also typically find practice questions on the web - try working through them with some friends. You don't want the first time you try writing code on a whiteboard to be with an interviewer, so try to make your practice sessions as real as possible.
Comments
Post a Comment