Interviews, finally!

I wish I could look - and sound - as good as she does during a phone interview.

Okay, clearly I've been slacking a little bit in the posting department. But, that only means that I've been busy, and now have lots to write about! Yay! Besides, isn't it smarter for me to actually research jobs, apply to them, and participate in interviews than it is for me to sit on my tush and blab all about it? I'd like to think so.

Anyway, there's much to discuss! Remember that big ol' important job application I had sent out before that I was having a minor anxiety attack over? I finally got in touch with that recruiter, and he could not have been nicer. He told me that the particular office was still looking over applications, and that they may have just gotten backed up. Sit tight, he said, and he would let me know if anything progresses - good or bad. So, naturally, over the next week, I checked my email every five minutes. Nothing. But, when I least expected it (while studying for an exam) I finally got the e-mail and, guess what? I got the interview! I was a tad bummed to read that it would be another phone interview, as the recruiter had told me that they were interested in me, they wanted to expedite my application and bypass a phone interview, etc. etc. But I was excited nonetheless.

Like I said, I had already interviewed with this company before for an internship last year. It was, without a doubt, my first "hardcore" interview. This isn't to say that all of my other jobs and internships have been characterized by total bullshit, but this company means serious business. Needless to say, I was somewhat caught off-guard during that interview; I had never been asked such major questions before, such as, "tell me about a time when your role was unclear, and what did you do to clarify that role?" I prepared for the interview, but I could have prepared for it even more. With that experience under my belt, however, I sort of knew what to expect this time around. I studied up on the company, and got lots of advice from my dad and my boyfriend, both of whom really know the ropes of the recruiting process and always offer great advice.

When the time came for this interview, I felt pretty ready, yet extremely nervous. Then came the call - the first of two back-to-back half hour conversations. Looking back, I definitely consider myself adequately prepared for the character/behavioral questions about leadership, teamwork, conflict resolution, and all that good stuff. But they totally put me on the spot with situational questions about particular marketing scenarios. I mean, they really put me on the spot. What frustrated me the most about this was, if I clearly couldn't answer a certain question to the best liking of the interviewer, he/she wouldn't just accept my answer as less-than-stellar. Rather, the interviewer would continue to probe me about it, as if making me feel more nervous would somehow magically bring the correct answer out of my mouth, like beautiful word vomit. This type of questioning definitely made me leave the interview feeling stupid, focusing on what went wrong, instead of what went right.

Also, although I never had this opinion before, I really do feel incredibly disadvantaged during phone interviews. Over the phone, I can't look an interviewer in the eye, I can't smile and show my passion for the position - I can't really connect with the interviewer. I guess it's kind of a trade off, because phone interviews allow me to look at my resume while I speak to someone, and write certain helpful notes.

But, who knows? Maybe I'm nervous about this for no reason, and the interviewers actually believed that our chats went perfectly. I doubt it. The good news is, I have another phone interview on Monday. More on that in another post. If anything, I guess I can at least look at this recent interview as some good practice.

Some selfish venting - isn't that what blogs are for, anyway?

So I still haven't heard from anyone at this company yet. I don't get it. Even though I told you - and myself - that I would remain skeptical and not get my hopes up because of my past internship rejection from this same company...I haven't heard anything at all, and that makes me nervous. Not even a "no." At this point, I'd even take a, "sorry, we thought we were interested in you, but after reading your resume and cover letter, we've decided you're just plain stupid and we want nothing to do with you." At least that would be an indication that some human life form had received my application materials.

Granted, the recruiter told me that I would be contacted "within two weeks if there is a potential fit," and those two weeks don't end until Friday. But what does this even mean, anyway? Do they just straight-up not contact me if there isn't a potential fit? This is a pretty renowned company, and they did contact me when I didn't get that past internship with them, so I'm going to give them the benefit of the doubt.

I'm also freaking out a little bit, because this recruiter not only told me that particular locations were interested in me, but that I had to rush the process because they wanted to speed things along. So, I would think that if they actually were interested in me, they would have contacted me by now. If I don't hear anything by Friday, I'll probably e-mail this recruiter to ask what exactly is up; I just don't want to appear like the neurotic crazy person that I truly am.

Deep breaths.

Finally getting going

Ummmm so...I'm pretty sure that I applied for my first job yesterday. No big deal.

I have been in contact with a recruiter from a company that I'd love to work for during the past few months. Basically, when I applied there for an internship last summer (and didn't eventually get it after interviewing and everything - I was devastated), they had kept my information on file. I was out at a Welcome Week party when I received the first e-mail from this recruiter. He sent me such a nice, informal message, that to be honest, I thought it was a scam. But, after doing some research, it wasn't! It was really an incredible feeling to be reached out to, instead of hopelessly reaching out, myself.

Anyway, this guy basically said that we would be in touch throughout my application process for the 2010 opportunities at this company. I was psyched, but their job postings hadn't been updated in a while. He told me that I should keep my eyes peeled, that the site would be updated sometime in October.

And, come October 1st, I got the call.

The recruiter not only told me that the postings had finally been updated, but that I had to send my resume and other application materials to him, ASAP. In case you hadn't realized (I know you were just waiting on pins and needles), I obviously had not updated my resume since my oh-so-successful meeting at the Career Center, or else I would have blogged about it; come on, now! Needless to say, I had a minor freak out. This stuff not only needed to be rushed over to the recruiter, but, due to the sheer amazingness of this company, my materials had to be perfect.

I decided to go to the library, since I'd probably be the most time efficient there. Good move, too, since I had issues scanning my transcript and had a lovely librarian on hand for assistance. I didn't consider the irony until later that I was applying for a job that would require me to get much more technical than figuring out buttons on a scanner. Hmmm...

Anyway, I sent my stuff out in pretty good time - and in pretty good condition, if I do say so myself. I'm trying very, very hard to not get my hopes up about this application, considering how high they were last year for the internship there and how crushed they were when I didn't get it. But, even though I have some friends, particularly those into finance, who are already hooked up with sick jobs for next year, I think that it is a pretty BFD that I just applied for my first job. I'd like to give myself a virtual pat on the back. Even though this is only application number one, I'll keep my fingers crossed.