Info on Job Search Process

Colleges and Universities A-Z University of Maryland - College Park
1

<p>Per worrywart's request over the summer, I'm posting a bit about my full-time job search from the past semester. I'll break it down into a few posts for easier reading.</p>

<p>[lindz, please keep us in the loop this year as you go through the interviewing process for a permanent job. Please give us an idea of the process for getting on an interviewer's schedule, whether employers specify a particular minimum GPA, which companies come to campus, how helpful the Smith School is vs. how much initiative you've got to have, etc. Thanks!]</p>

<p>I'll start out by saying that I do already have a job secured for after graduation. I'll be staying somewhat local, in McLean VA, with a small market research & segmentation firm. I interned with this firm last summer.</p>

<p>At the end of my summer internship, I was made a full-time offer and asked to reply by the end of October. I knew this would probably not be enough time for me but figured that I could always ask for an extension.</p>

<p>There are two main sources I used to find jobs: the Smith School's job site HireSmith, and the University Career Center website.
HireSmith is limited to business majors and alumni, as well as non-business majors in the QUEST program. The University Career Center site can be used by anyone. If your major is one that does not qualify for a certain position, you are not allowed to apply. (However, if you were really interested you still would be able to view the entire job description and company contact information, and could follow up on your own.)</p>

<p>The two systems are very similar. Basically......
Companies post full-time positions as well as internships or part-time jobs. You can search for specific key words, companies, or browse the whole list. Each listing has a deadline, and the ones with on-campus interviews also have a date when you will be notified if you get an interview.
The job postings can be as detailed or as vague as the employer wants. Some direct you to their company website either for information or an additional application. If a minimum GPA or other qualifications are required or recommended, it usually specifies them. </p>

<p>To apply, you must upload a resume (and cover letter and/or transcript, if necessary) to the system that you then "attach" and send to the employer through the website. Once you have everything uploaded, it's really simple to use.</p>

<p>Here's an example of a job listing (I've sort of condensed it from the page):
HUMAN RESOURCES -- Intel Corporation
Date Posted: 1/20/08
Applications Accepted Until: 3/1/08</p>

<p>Description: Opportunities in a variety of functional areas within Human Resources including Business Partner, HR Operations, Staffing, Business Analysis, Compensation & Benefits, and Training</p>

<p>U.S. Locations Portland, OR; Chandler, AZ; Folsom, CA; Santa Clara, CA; Albuquerque, NM or Riverton, UT.</p>

<p>In these positions you will be applying the fundamental requirements of the Human Resources profession. You will be expected to learn how to use data to drive sound business decisions while maintaining high standards of professionalism and integrity through business partnering. Your responsibilities will include but are not limited to:
-consulting to managers in the business regarding employee related issues
-partnering with senior HR partners to define and implement program changes
-delivering corporate programs to the business</p>

<p>Qualifications:
Degrees and Experience
BA in Human Resources, Business Administration, Labor Relations or other related field of study. Human Resources work experience is a definite plus.</p>

<p>For intern candidates: Undergraduate candidates graduating in May/June 2009 with a minimum 3.0 GPA</p>

<p>Required Skills
Successful candidates will be capable of generating solutions to a wide variety of HR issues and a strong working knowledge of multiple HR functions. She/he should possess the following skills:
• problem solving
• teamwork
• leadership
• influencing
• project management
• communication skills
• data analysis
Demonstrated competency and experience in HR processes, employment law, employee relations, employee development, coaching, influencing and organizational capability planning desired.</p>

<p>So, that is how I searched for jobs I was interested in. Again, both job search websites are quite similar to use, and they are only available to UMD students and alumni.</p>

2

<p>Part 2....</p>

<p>During the fall I attended a Career Fair for business students, although I didn't find much that interested me. Fall recruiting season is mostly for finance and accounting majors.</p>

<p>Fall is also a good recruiting time for consulting, and the QUEST program (though unintentionally) primes students for consulting jobs. I wasn't sure if consulting was really what I wanted to do... I did like the idea of consulting but I wasn't sure if the travel and long hours would appeal to me or get old REALLY fast.</p>

<p>I mentioned to one of the QUEST program coordinators that I was thinking about consulting, and she contacted one of the program alumni who lives in the area and works for Deloitte. He got in touch with me and we met for lunch in Washington DC to talk about what he does and Deloitte's work/life balance programs, and stuff like that.</p>

<p>I had applied for a job with Deloitte but did not get selected for an interview. Between that rejection and doing some thinking about where my interests were, I decided that I didn't really want a consulting job anyway.</p>

<p>Around that time I saw a job posting for Consolidated Graphics' Leadership Development Program (LDP). This really interested me because it was a rotational program where new hires spent about 18 months learning all about the different parts of the company, from actually getting their hands dirty in the printing presses to meeting clients to making budgets. After the program, LDP associates start doing whatever interested them most, at any one of their 70+ companies nationwide. I thought this was pretty great.</p>

<p>So I applied for that job through the HireSmith website.</p>

<p>I also sent out a few other applications for "sales/marketing" positions at companies I had heard of, though I wasn't particularly interested in sales.</p>

<p>I found out that I had been selected for an interview with Consolidated Graphics. Once you're selected for an interview, you log back into the HireSmith (or career center) website and schedule it there. You can choose from a list of available times (and go back and change it if necessary). It also tells you what room your interview will be in (the Career Center has an interview area with rooms and a lounge, and the business school does as well).</p>

<p>My interview with Consolidated Graphics was interesting because one of the interviewers who was a member of the Leadership Development Program was actually an acquaintance of mine-- we had worked on a group project together the year before. This relaxed me, although I was a little nervous because I didn't want to seem TOO relaxed and friendly. My other interviewer was a man who had just finished up his LDP and was starting in sales. We sat around a small round table in an interview room in the business school.</p>

<p>I had a few other interviews but nothing that really gives any good examples of what you all are looking to hear about.</p>

<p>I did have two off-site interviews at companies, one including lunch with the president, which went well. I felt well-prepared for those types of situations.</p>

3

<p>Part 3......</p>

<p>Currently not that many of my friends have jobs for next year. Most of those going into accounting or consulting do already have their offers, but my fellow marketing students are going to really start hunting this semester. Quite a few are planning on law school. Nobody that I know of is planning to get an MBA before working for a few years first.</p>

<p>This is definitely reflective of the fact that the majority of companies ACTIVELY recruiting at Maryland are accounting/finance firms. You do need a lot more initiative as a marketing or international business (for example) student. The fact that we have access to the Career Center site as well is useful because many PR or communications companies post there to get a bigger audience.</p>

<p>I believe that the Career Center publishes a "book" of resumes (this is something you can opt-in for) although I'm not sure what exactly that means. My guess is that they make it public and employers can search for certain criteria. I have had recruiters call me and say that they received my resume from the Career Center.</p>

<p>Anyway, I am quite pleased with my future job. I know a lot of people there since I had an internship last summer, and am still being included in invitations for events like happy hours and even the company holiday party. They invited me in to meet the new Chief Marketing Officer when the one I had known from the summer left the company. (By the way, I found the internship through a posting on HireSmith last year.)</p>

<p>At the end of my job search process this year I had two offers (and one pending interview in New Jersey) plus a few requests for second interviews that I had turned down, as I liked my previous offers better than what the other companies had to offer in terms of job description and responsibilities. Some people might think that I didn't spend enough time but I really have no regrets and I appreciate the usefulness of the system and tools provided by the Career Center and the business school.</p>

<p>(end of my 3 posts...... any questions?) :)</p>

4

<p>Thanks so much, Lindz, for being true to your word and to being so thorough! Both of those qualities will get you far in the workplace. Apparently, I had missed these posts. </p>

<p>My S registered with HireSmith over the winter break and he showed me that the instructions say to identify yourself according to your anticipated year of graduation, rather than by how many credits you've accrued. Consequently, he has been excluded from the internship postings that specify they are looking for a rising junior (at the minimum). Is there any way around this, since he has enough credits to complete his sophomore year as a freshman?</p>

<p>In any case, have you known anyone in the Smith School who was able to snag an internship following freshman year (without family connections)?</p>

5

<p>Part 2... </p>

<p>As far as the resume book assembled by the Career Center, I would urge all students to submit theirs for inclusion. My older son is graduating from another university this year and has been contacted by three employers who had seen his resume in his school's book. It takes just a few seconds to submit one, so why not? </p>

<p>In his case, he has landed his first job through a recruitment fair for which you had to submit your resume for consideration and then each participating employer selected a dozen students to interview at the fair. Those half-hour interviews were followed up by invitations to interview at the company.</p>

<p>It sounds like you are walking into a wonderful work situation where you already know people, you've been treated as an insider even since your return to school in the fall, you like the nature of the work, and it's in a geographic location with which you're familiar and comfortable. That's all good stuff. And as I'm telling my older son, you're not married to your first employer-- at worst, it's a launch pad for getting experience and figuring out what you do and don't like to do; at best, you may make some lifelong friends and get your foot into a field that you find rewarding and stimulating.</p>