I’m an 18-month student, and I’m wondering HOW I should start taking action for full-time recruiting?
If you are actively recruiting for a summer internship, please stay focused on that goal. Securing your summer internship is your top priority right now. Book a meeting with your career advisor for additional support.
For 18-month students thinking ahead to full time recruiting preparation, here are a few important things to keep in mind.
- Meet with your career advisor to start the discussion and get customized recommendations based on your specific situation and goals.
- 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 be improved? The most successful job seekers have a keen ability to critically analyze their approach, make 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.
- 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.
- Attend our CDO MFin session on 4/29: Making the Most of Your MFin Summer Internship Workshop (registration details to come), where recent MFin alumni will provide advice and share insights from their summer internship experiences in 2025, and we’ll discuss how to effectively position yourself for a full-time offer.
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.
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?
