To-Do List for the “Real World”
By Fred Akau ‘20
Some career things to know before leaving ‘SC
Being “Job ready”
Beyond all the amazingly-awesome things that we came to USC for: Game Days (C’mon JT), constant mid-80’s weather, the large social scene, or the diverse student body; In the grand scheme of things, we all came to get jobs. And, hopefully, we all came to USC to get good jobs.
And so, below are some of the things you should confidently have “mastered” before graduating to be what I like to call “Job Ready”:
Self-Tailored, Beefy Resumé
Ahhh. The infamous one-page document that seems to be the cornerstone of who you are, career-wise at least (And yes that IS how long any college student’s resumè should be).
Your resumé is a testament to where you spent your time in college, a track sheet of the skills you acquired, and a show of how qualified you are to actually start “working”. So, the first thing that you should focus on when crafting your resumè is tailoring it to the image you want to portray to employers.
Faced with a deep uncertainty in how to tackle the resumè, the first mistake many of us make is to retreat and rely on some “basic” format (which we haven’t updated in a while if we’re honest). However, general guidelines and formatting aside, it is up to your full discretion in how you want to present yourself. This means highlighting the skills, jobs, internships, volunteer work, accolades, and accomplishments that you feel show the best side of you. Also, it is NOT required, and strongly NOT recommended, to try and list everything that you may have done since high school.
Now, in order to highlight that best side of you, it is time to start searching and applying for those things to beef up your resumè in the first place. Show them you did something useful, valuable, and cool. And it just so happens USC is one of the best schools to find out what that is:
- A basic format to get your resumé started. A place-holder before you go and get it critiqued, multiple times, by experienced others.
- A list of USC classes that are focused on obtaining an internship AND getting course credit at the same time. These classes are hidden gems, because USC guarantees you a spot somewhere, figuring you need an internship to take the class in the first place.
Landing & Nailing the Interview: Comfort is the Key
Congratulations. Now that your trusty resumè is dusted-off and polished, do not be surprised when the interviews start rolling in (especially with USC under that education section. Fight on!). Unfortunately, though, all of your wonderfully great career experiences, accolades, and credentials are simply what got you the interview. To get the job requires your own additional “personal touch” to the words-on-a piece-of-paper that is your resumé.
And the only possible way to add any personal flair is to start with being comfortable going into the interview and during the interview.
The reality is that if many of us have already seriously neglected our resumés, so the effort being put into practicing our interview skills must be virtually non-existent. It is really difficult to show your “best-self” while beads of sweat manifest themselves on your forehead and your leg is uncontrollably tapping from anxiety and nerves. Although it seems absurdly obvious that practice is THE most effective way to become more comfortable in interviews, the majority of us college students still do not put much effort into doing so.
If you have had more real interviews than practice mock interviews, then right there is your first simple fix. Unless you somehow had contacted your interviewers after your interview and asked for a detailed evaluation (which would be a little strange), then you have never gotten any real insight into your personal interview weakness, or how to improve upon them at all.
Some USC resources to get you started:
• Career Center: Schedule a mock interview appointment with a career counselor via connectSC. (Got to “Counselor/Calendar)
• You can even send a copy of a job description or any other specific additions that can help make the interview more tailored to you.
• Review common interview questions
• While every interview is different, if you really internalize the very basic interview questions, then you’ll find that your answers for those basic questions are much easier to locate and apply to almost any other question.
• Suggestion: Make an actual document with sample interview questions and answers that you continually will refer back to and update.
From Comfort to Confidence: What makes a good interview great
Finally, once you have become so comfortable that you simply laugh at any such thing as interview “jitters”, my last piece of advice is to work on adding that extra “pizzazz”, “sauce”, and originality that makes you stand out. When interviews become more competitive, the candidates will all have generally learned how to answer questions with confidence. So, now it is about distinguishing yourself with a fiery passion of determination that shows not only that you are qualified for the job (which the other candidates probably are as well), but that you also want the job more than others. That there is something specific about you that will add to the company or work environment.
While this “personal touch” can only be found by you, I have provided two examples that can be of help:
1.) One great way to stand out is to steer your interview from a strict interrogation style to a more relaxed conversation vibe. Answering questions or going through the interview in a stiffly rehearsed, overly practiced fashion can make the interviewer feel as though they aren’t getting the “real you”, or that you’re a really boring person. Make some appropriate jokes, smile, and act like you are simply having a conversation. This will also alleviate any pressure that interviewers feel as well (Yes, they also don’t enjoy giving interviews).
2.) Another tip that should be a must-have is sending a thank-you letter after the interview. A recent CareerBuilder survey showed that 22 percent of employers are less likely to hire a candidate who does not send a thank you and 91 percent like being thanked, so based on these stats, you can be rest assured that a thank you note will not hurt your chances at the job.
To end, here’s a quick little video about “standing out” from a USC alum. Just one example of the many tidbits that you can find about interviews if you explore USC’s vast array of career resources.
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