I’m an 18 month student, and I’m wondering HOW I should start taking action for full-time recruiting?
Understanding relevant industry and company timelines for full-time recruitment will be very helpful. Even more important is figuring out how to execute a full-time recruiting plan for your desired career goal.
The next best step you can take for your full-time recruiting effort is to meet with your career advisor to start the discussion and get customized recommendations based on your specific situation and goals. To get a jump-start on the process, here are some best practices you can implement now to put yourself in the best position for your full-time job search:
- Start building relationships with your future summer colleagues. Introduce yourself to team members via email or LinkedIn this spring and ask for a chance to meet over coffee (either virtually or in person). You can get a sense of the person’s career path, the team or company culture, and what type of work you’ll be doing. You never know what experiences they have had, and how they can help you with information, advice, or connections. Continue to be positive about your upcoming internship and working with the team/firm. Whether or not you want to go back to your internship company for a full-time role, excelling at your summer internship and getting a full-time offer is extremely helpful, even if you plan to change directions.
- Assess current fit for your target full-time role, and seek opportunities to gain necessary skills and knowledge now. Spring and summer are a great time to add skills and obtain knowledge that would help your recruiting efforts. For example, getting a certificate or subscribing to relevant publications such as the Financial Times (free for MIT students), Wall Street Journal (electronic version free for MIT students), TechCrunch, etc. Your efforts here will pay off.
- Reflect on your internship recruiting process and identify areas of strength and areas to improve. What went well in the internship search, and what could use improvement? The most successful job seekers have a keen ability to critically analyze their approach, make any necessary adjustments, and ask for help when needed. Added bonus: Employers are truly eager to find candidates who can go through this type of reflection process and implement feedback to improve results.
Still have questions? Not sure where to start? Reach out to your career advisor. We look forward to supporting you!
See previous MFin Career Question of the Week: I’m an 18 month student, and I’m wondering WHEN I should start taking action for full-time recruiting?
