<p>I graduated last month from an ivy with no job prospects whatsoever. I am a very shy person and my feelings get hurt very easily. My shyness is a huge hindrance to the whole "networking" thing and is probably a part of the reason why I don't have a job yet. It is something I am trying to work on. I am currently back at home and am desperately looking for a job. Here's the story:</p>
<p>I interned at a very large corporation (fortune top 20) last summer before my senior year. Not at the headquarters, but at a different office. At the end of the summer, they said I was one of their "star" interns (probably around 100 interns across the country) and they were very impressed with all of the work I had done. My boss had mentioned a couple of times he hope the company gave me an offer after I left. We had a visit from a top VP during the summer, and he specifically told me he wanted me to come back to the company after I left and that I would go far. On my last day of work, I even got a call from one of the top chief VP's at the headquarters thanking me again for all of the work I had did and how impressed they were. I had taken on a very large project and developed a product that they told me would be presented to the CEO of the company. I was very flattered and overwhelmed. </p>
<p>I absolutely loved the company and was dying for an offer. I know for a fact that the intern before me the summer before got an offer on her last day working there. I definitely didn't, I just had a formal exit interview with my boss's boss. Nevertheless, I went back to school and crossed my fingers. I got an email a couple of weeks into September from my previous boss that basically said thanks for everything and the best of luck with my future endeavors. I was very confused, shocked, and upset for all of the reasons mentioned above.</p>
<p>Therefore, I came to the conclusion that the company must have secretly hated me and that's why I didn't get an offer. I shrugged my shoulders and moved on. </p>
<p>Fast forward to today, and I am desperately searching for my first post-college job. My parents keep telling me persistently to reach out the company I interned for last summer, they are sure they would love to have me back. I told them that it was a ludicrous idea. The company obviously didn't want me otherwise I would have gotten an offer from them already. My parents said that my conclusion was really dumb and that maybe they were waiting for me to reach out to them first. </p>
<p>I would feel really embarrassed reaching out to my old boss and begging for job after he basically told me to have a nice life. After writing this, I realize how immature I may be being. But I always thought the way internships work was that you complete an internship, and then wait for the company to reach out to you. My parents told me it wouldn't be groveling, just networking. What do you think? </p>
<p>You have nothing to lose. The worst thing that can happen is that they say they’re not interested and you end up exactly where you are now. You don’t have to beg for a job, but you can send a polite email expressing your interest, saying how much you valued your past internship experience there, and asking if they are hiring. Even if they aren’t they could potentially pass your info on to someone else</p>
<p>Contact them. If nothing else, it sounds like it’ll be a good opportunity for you to learn not to take things so personally and to practice networking with someone.</p>
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<p>Why would you take this to mean that they weren’t interested in you? </p>
<p>September is 9 months away from when you would be starting. </p>
<p>It sounds like your boss was thankful for everything and wished you the best of luck in your future endeavors. I’ve said that to people and I sure hope that they didn’t take it to mean I wasn’t interested in working with them. </p>
<p>Did you actually APPLY for a job with the company that you interned with? Did they have one available? It is virtually impossible get an offer if you haven’t applied for a job. </p>
<p>I would contact them. Maybe they can shed some light, but in the mean time keep looking, you graduated from an Ivy so there will be plenty of jobs.</p>
<p>The job world doesn’t come to you. For heaven’s sake, drop an email to your boss and let him know you have graduated and are job hunting. Tell him you would love to work for the company, and ask him for suggestions of the best route to apply for a position. He may tell you to go through HR, or he may do something more personal like route your resume to areas hiring or something like that. Either way, follow up on what he suggests. I think your parents are right, you have not even ASKED them to hire you. </p>
<p>Other things to do - do you have a LinkedIn account? If not, create one and link to everyone you worked with on your internship (both at the company and fellow interns). And any grads from your college you know (your age or older) who are out in the working world. Plus any high school friends who have graduated and have “real jobs” now. Or parents of friends who work in an industry you are interested in. Any of those people may know of positions now or in the future if you are looking again later on. (Note: LinkedIn is NOT like Facebook, you do not have to be “friends” with someone – it is for maintaining professional connections, so don’t feel at all weird about inviting people to connect). Put your resume into your profile section, and note that you are looking for a new opportunity.</p>
<p>I think this is a ■■■■■ thread… Since when does saying thank you and good luck mean they " secretly hate you "?
That seriously makes no sense to me at all and I have no clue why you would be “confused, shocked, and upset”.
Telling someone to have a nice life and good luck is a GOOD thing, I mean come on! </p>
<p>If this is a serious thread and this isn’t a joke, PLEASE send them an email. Maybe I’m missing something critical, but there is literally no reason for them to hate you and you should have a solid chance for a job. If anything, waiting for so long because you were “scared” probably slightly hindered your chances than if you applied earlier. </p>
<p>Good luck and have a nice life 
( I mean that in a good way )</p>
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<p>Why accuse the OP of malfeasance. I think it’s a genuine thread. I hope s/he gets the job and perhaps seeks counseling to overcome the shyness. </p>
<p>There is a huge gap between “hating you” and not coming up with a job offer. First of all, you are not in the market for a job right now, are you? You need to approach them for an offer when you are ready to start looking for a job. You know that is not your “ace in the hole” either, so you’d better be looking at other options as well. A lot could have happened between when you were interning and now, so you may not get an offer from them even if they loved you then. It’s not easy getting a job these days, and most interns do NOT get job offers. </p>
<p>Thank you so much for the responses everyone, I really appreciate the advice. This is not a ■■■■■ thread, I am sorry if it came off as ridiculous…I have social/mental issues that I am trying to work through. You are all right, I really have nothing to lose and I need to practice networking anyway. I am in the middle of drafting an email to my old boss now and am holding my head high and trying to think positive while I continue the job hunt :)</p>
<p>It’s definitely not groveling. I would shoot your previous boss an email and just like everyone else said, politely say you’d love to work for the company. </p>
<p>Hi angelfish13. I think you got some great advice from intparent about creating a Linkedin account. You could ask your supervisors from the previous internship if they’d be willing to post a recommendation on your account. That’s always impressive. </p>
<p>Don’t despair. Looking for a job is a full-time job in itself. My son just graduated from Willamette University in Oregon and now (a month later) has landed a great job at a top public relations firm in San Francisco. He’s an English major – not generally considered the sort of background that leads to multiple job offers. But he got them. Here’s how: He created a Linkedin account after his internships and had supervisors post recommendations. From January to just last week, he applied to around 80 jobs. Each application had a cover letter tailored to the position. From these, he landed about 14 interviews, and right after each interview, he linked to the people he’d talked with on Linkedin and also followed up with an email. Doing this helped his Linkedin network grow from 10 to 125 people.</p>
<p>Think of it like fishing. To catch a fish, you need a hook in the water (the application). You need attractive bait (great cover letter; resume; Linkedin profile). The more hooks you have in the water, the better. You’ll have some that receive no attention. You’ll get some nibbles. Occasionally you’ll have a bite and things will get really exciting. But even if you land a second-round interview and nothing comes of it, the goal is not to despair, but to simply throw another hook in the water.</p>
<p>If you persevere, ask for feedback, and learn from your mis-steps, you will land a job. Good luck! </p>