I realize I’m only a sophomore in college and young and also realize I am going through the process of studying hard and working toward the best of my ability. We all have dreams. We all have different talents. And we are all here for a purpose. With that said, here’s five cold hard truths I learned in my Marketing Principles Course as to how much more you can invest in your future and make the most out of your education. There’s no magic button but I hope these help:
1. Make Competitive Choices at the Start of Your College Career
This means obtaining an internship as early as possible, perhaps as early as sophomore year. Now don’t worry if you don’t obtain one by your sophomore year but at least apply to as many as you can. After graduation, no recruiter or hiring manager is going to care what college you went to, what they care about is how much work experience you’ve had. Chances are a student from OSU with valuable work experience will get chosen for a job position versus a student from MIT with no work experience. Get the experience...do a happy dance!
2. Know what you want and attack like a shark
Okay, Maybe not like a shark, but at least be confident about your wants! Meaning- focus on the job objectives that go with the position you plan to apply for. If it doesn’t match up, move on.
3. Students often have 10 seconds or less to sell themselves
The purpose is to make an impression, but an impression that looks to disqualify rather than qualify you for the position. Another important notion to note is what I call the 3 W’s: the what, the who and the why. The “what” symbolizes what job one worked. The “who” is whom one worked for and the “when” represents the duration of time the employee worked. If anything, list academic and work accomplishments. If you hate listing your accomplishments like me, just remember that listing the accomplishments is not a sign for boasting. Quite the contrary, rather it’s to show your contributions for this job.
4. It’s not about “who you know” but rather “who knows you.”
Make a Linkedin account! If someone mentions your name and mentions why they like you that could open up another potential job for yourself. The goal is to draw as many parallels as possible. It’s important to recognize your competition. The way to go about this is through networking.
5. You are competing against “100 other ‘me’s”.
Meaning, you would be competing against other students your age, with a similar college background and major. To be able to distinguish yourself, you have to ask “what would set me apart from the others?” Do the preparation to answer any questions the interviewers throw at you.
