Choosing the Right Summer Job for You
The process of hiring and training someone is incredibly expensive, making it that much more important for recruiters make wise choices in their hires. Summer jobs are one thing recruiters can look at to find good evidence of what someone can contribute to an organization. So, the right summer job can really make a difference. It's perfectly normal to be a little intimidated by the job search process, but keep in mind that the recruiter on the other side of the desk is anxious too. They may be wondering if the candidate is exaggerating, or worrying that they could be a great interviewer but a lousy worker. Recruiters want to figure out how the candidate is going to fit in with an existing work team. Basically, the successful candidate is the one who does the best job of addressing the recruiter's fears. And the best way to do that is with tangible facts and relevant experience.
What you want is work that demonstrates you took a project or assignment from start to finish. Work that shows that people depended on you and you came through. It's a good idea to look for work that engages you in more than one way. For example, camp counselor is a typical summer job. It can show that you took responsibility for children, which can be really challenging. But it doesn't tell me how well you did it. If you're hired back the next summer as a unit head, then I know you were reasonably effective. In that position I can assume you had to also talk to parents, which demands different kinds of communications skills. That's better.
Students should also consider their career goals. If this same student who's working as a camp counselor is a journalism major, I would suggest that a summer job that provides writing and interviewing experience with tangible work product, like articles or press releases would be much more valuable.
Another good rule of thumb is to think numbers. In the case of Vector Marketing, students can really show numbers. For example, "I built a customer base of 150 households. My sales exceeded $15,000. Of the presentations I made, 65% made a purchase." Anything that is measurable and objective is good.
We're also looking to see how candidates might deal with difficult or unexpected situations. That's something to consider in choosing a summer job. Is this something that's going to be a challenge? Am I going to be asked to handle things I've never done before? Aill I need to step out of my comfort zone?
Shameless Plug: Any sales job is great experience. Even for students who aren't business majors, it's going to show recruiters that you have had to communicate with a variety of people. If your income is dependent on sales, that's even better because it demonstrates motivation and accountability. Unusual or entrepreneurial work can really stand out on a resume and give the recruiter a lot to work with in an interview. Click here to start your own entrepreneurial experience with Vector Marketing. |
