Internships vs. Jobs

            A question that has come up almost daily between my friends and I is: if I get offered an internship for this summer, should I take it?

           

            I have been struggling with this question myself. It’s difficult because we are all told that when you graduate college you should have a job, plans for a future job, or maybe grad school in the fall. I know some of us will leave High Point with clear direction of at least the next year but for some of us not so much. The scariest thing about internships after graduation is the unknown. What if they do not hire you after you spend an entire summer working for them? And if they don’t, what is next?

            Recently I have had an interview for a summer internship. During my interview they had told me that they do usually hire interns but its not guaranteed. Basically if you work hard and fit into their company then they will probably hire you come August.

           

            At the start of my job search I was 100% I neeeeeeed a job after graduation now, not so much. I have come to terms and almost decided that I do want an internship after graduation. I’m thinking about it this way; I am only 21 how am I really supposed to know exactly where I want to work, where I want to live, what I want to do? I only really have ideas of all those things. I think accepting an internship, for those of you who are scared, is actually a good thing. Not only does the company want to make sure they like who you are and how you work for them, this is your chance, as someone who is deciding their life, to pick where you want to be. You are allowed to go to an internship and realize you don’t want to work there in the future (and that’s okay) but when you sign a contract with a company you probably will not be allowed to make that decision a month in to working there. Take those three summer months to see if YOU can see yourself working there. Don’t let this decision be all on the people in the company, it’s your life! Choose what you want to do and who you want to be.

            So you spend all summer with this company and at the end they decide not to hire you or you decide you don’t want to work for them. What’s next? DON’T panic! During your summer internship you should continue keeping an eye out for other job possibilities this means you don’t have to go completely back to square one. Add the internship experience to your resume and move on. There will never be a time when there are no jobs open anywhere. DON’T panic!  You will find a job!  It will happen for all of us J

Interview questions

Yesterday I had another interview with one of the leaders in the social media world. This interview was for a summer internship that would potentially turn into a job at the end of it. This would be an amazing opportunity if it works out.

What I want to talk about today is challenging interview questions. For this position I would be working closely with important clients but also with a team from the company. For this reason you have to be able to work with multiple different people and multiple different opinions. During the interview, I was asked the question “Was there ever a time where you and your boss from your previous internship disagreed on a certain thing and how did you work through it?” At that moment I was thrown a little off guard. Its not like I didn’t prepare for this interview but at that moment my brain was so scrambled that I couldn’t think of an exact time. If I could have taken a few minutes to really think about my four working months then I could have easily given her an answer but I was stumped. Luckily I pulled something and was able to answer the question.

We all know how to answer the basic question “Tell me about yourself” “If you can describe yourself in three words what would it be?” “Tell me about your previous experience”. We prep for these questions, so when we are asked we already have a set answer.  I did a little research about hard interview questions, just so I can be more prepared next time.

Here are some questions that I found to be tough.

- Why should I hire you?

            Most people don’t think about this most basic question. It makes sense though; you are applying for a position, why should they take you? To answer this question you really need to do some research, about the company and about yourself. Tell them exactly why you would fit into this position, maybe because of who you are or some of your experiences.

- Tell me one thing you would change about your last job?

            Do not go and bash your previous employment or boss, people talk and it could go around. I would turn this question into not what you wanted to change but something your looking for in this new job. Something that you want to see happen in this job that didn’t happen in your last.

- What is the biggest risk you’ve ever taken?

            This one you just have to be prepared for and have an answer. It’s a good one though; I don’t even think I could answer it right now.

- What is your greatest weakness?

            This one is tough; we all want to say “My greatest weakness is that I am a perfectionist!” Using a strength and turning it into a weakness is well weak. Talk about a true weakness and what you are doing to overcome it. Honesty is better in this situation.

I hope this helps all of you out there doing interviews! I know for my next interview I will be more prepared to answer the tougher questions.  

Coming back from an AWESOME spring break in Florida I have realized that we are approaching graduation at a scary pace! So I decided to make a to do list of fun things to finish before I graduate


TO DO:
1. Rent a bike from Slane and ride around on campus on a beautiful day!
2. Spend an entire day hanging out around campus and avoiding my room.
3. Try something new at all eating locations on campus.
4. Walk to and from class on every nice day.
5. Watch a movie in the UC Cinema
6. Run around campus!
7. Complete a bar crawl


Any suggestions that I should add to my list!?!

70 DAYS

70 DAYS. This is what someone told me the other day… 70 DAYS. That is it.

It’s hard to think about. Growing up I could remember the first signs of spring coming around and I would start my countdown to the last day of school. I’m originally from New Jersey so spring was more like May, but here in North Carolina it is early March and it is 74 degrees out! I know I can’t start wearing my summer dresses and put away my coats just yet, but when you have that first day of nice weather you know spring cannot be that far away. Spring makes everyone happy, animals AND people come out of their caves in the spring. One by one you start to see people putting on their bikinis or swim trunks and lay out by the pool! This time of the year is my absolute favorite. This year will probably be one of the first years that I will say summer… can wait. I will not be counting down the days and I will not be excited. The idea of graduation coming up does not sit well with me and gives me a wee bit of anxiety.

Mother nature needs to slow down the days and up the heat!