I'm already feeling a bit of an information overload as various companies come to campus and conduct on-campus recruiting. While I've only attended a handful of presentations, I can already see why people get exhausted with this process.
With a large number of prospective employers coming onto campus to recruit, you really have to filter out the ones that you aren't interested in so as to prevent yourself "drowning" in the wave of presentations and information overload. That being said, if you don't really know much about a certain company/industry, a good way to get a feel for it is to at least attend the company presentation and see what they have to offer. Can't hurt right? With less than 10 months to make the transition back to the workplace, the clock is ticking ever louder.
You could say that attending some of these presentations in P1 is being a bit too keen but can you really ever be too keen with your own future at stake here? To a certain extent I guess you can especially if you soon become infamous for being too keen and constantly "hijacking" the sessions that are technically meant for the P4's (those graduating in <4 months) Maybe you'll land that dream job with the company that you want but surely part of being successful in the long run is being aware when you are stepping on other peoples' toes and ultimately creating a negative impression. No prizes for guessing that this is last paragraph is loosely based on something I've observed one of my classmates doing over the past few days.
After attending some of these presentations, I'm beginning to get the feeling that changing industries is a lot harder than it seems for anyone thinking of doing so after a 1 year program (especially if there isn't time to do an internship over the summer). I've spoken to the hiring managers at some of these presentations and they're clearly more keen to hire "more of the same" rather than "try something new". While many companies will say that they'll consider all candidates who are qualified for the position, I really can't find fault with them if they decide to give an interview to the candidate who has 4 years of experience in a related field rather than someone who may have more years of experience but in an unrelated field. At the end of the day, these are companies, not charities and they have to rationalise their decisions around hiring. If they can get someone who is able to add value from day 1 (or at least in the first month or so without having to invest too much in formal training), the better for the company. When speaking with the hiring manager of an MNC
I'm not saying that it's impossible to change industry (as there are numerous case studies of people who have done that) but it requires a concerted effort on your part and a clear vision of where you want to end up. That way you can really channel your time most importantly to getting your foot in the door. Various ways include participating in club events here in school, finding an independent study project that will allow you to learn more about the company/industry or just speaking to as many people as possible who've worked in that industry before.
The catch here of course is that you must know which industry you want to go to. What about those who still haven't made up your mind? (like myself!) Hmmm...
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