The Internship Search

By Lauren

"Congratulations, we would like to offer you a position as a Summer Associate....."

Those are the words every First-Year MBA student is waiting to hear. After a TON of time and effort, I can happily say that I finally heard those words, and my internship search is over! The internship search is daunting, time consuming, and a lot of work. But it's also exciting- you get to explore new companies and career paths. Through the process, I learned a lot about myself and envisioned myself in a number of different companies and career paths.

While everyone's internship search is different, here is my advice on going about the internship search.

Lauren's Keys to Successfully Finding an Internship

1. Start Early!
2. Network, Network, Network!
3. Attend Information Services
4. Use Career Services

Start Early: Beginning in September, I met with my Career Services Advisor to identify an internship search strategy that involved networking, attending information sessions, and exploring companies I was interested in. She helped me realize that any work I did in the beginning of the year would help me later on and that the sooner I started, the more companies I could explore, the more connections I could make, and the more I'd learn about what I really want to do.

Network: I set up a number of informational interviews throughout the first semester that positioned me well to secure an internship at the beginning of my second semester. I held two informational interviews with two employees and networked with several other people at the company I am interning for this summer. Those conversations not only helped me learn about the company, but were incredibly helpful during my interviews because I had prior insight into the company, demonstrated interest in the company, and a good explanation for why I wanted to intern there.

Attend Information Sessions:  BC brings top-ranked companies to campus for Information Sessions such as John Hancock, Liberty Mutual, Hasbro, CVS Caremark, EMC, and Oceanspray, to name a few. I attended as many information sessions as possible to learn about companies and industries I was interested in as well as ones I wanted to learn more about. Every information session is a learning opportunity as well as a great way to network with company representatives and establish relationships for the future. I made connections with several representatives at information sessions and made a point to introduce myself to the representatives of the company I'm interning for!

Use Career Services:  My career advisor was amazing. She was willing to meet with me as often as I needed to help guide me through the process. At first, I met with her every two weeks to prepare for informational interviews, brainstorm new companies to target and connections at those companies. She provided helpful advice on some of my cover letters. The day before one of my interviews, I had a freak out moment, and frantically emailed her asking for advice on how to prepare. She met with me for an hour, simulating an interview, helping me build my impact stories, and providing insight on the types of questions they would ask and pointed me towards facts I should know about the company. She also pumped me up and gave me an extra boost of confidence for the interviews.

The Interviews

So, what are internship interviews actually like?

First Round Interviews: Most of the companies I interviewed with started with a 30-45 minute behavioral interview where they asked basic questions like:

• Why an MBA?
• Why do you want to work for this company?
• What is your least favorite class?
• Tell me about a time when you had to use data to make a decision
• Tell me about a time when you navigated a difficult situation
• Tell me about a leadership experience

Most of my behavioral interviews were very relaxed- the interviewer was trying to get a feel for who I am as a person and if I would fit into the company culture.  

Second Round Interviews: Most of my second round interviews involved a 30-45 minutes case and a 30-60 minute behavioral interview. The cases I did were not as bad as I imagined they would be, but I would say they definitely require preparation! During the case, my best piece of advice is to take a minute to organize how you are going to present your analysis so that you come across organized and make a more compelling analysis.  

"Super Day" Interviews: Some companies host "Super Day" interviews, where they bring lots of candidates to the company's office in for a series of interview (mix of case and behavioral). During these days, they not only evaluate you on how well you perform in the interviews, but also on how you interact with others while you're waiting for your interview. They may have a room reserved for candidates, where they converse with each other and current employees. This is a great opportunity to show that you can play well with others and fit in with the company culture. Not surprisingly, the interviews during Super Days vary- for example, one company I interviewed with had four separate 30-minute, back-to-back interviews, while another had a very relaxed pace. I came an hour early for my interview to mingle in the candidate lounge and stayed afterwards to eat lunch with candidates.

That has been my experience so far!  Hopefully these tips are helpful!

Coffee Chats and Business School

by Lauren

From Coffee Chat to BC...
Last year, when I was applying to Business school, I never expected that a coffee chat would be the deciding factor in which B-school I would attend. During the interview process, I chose to fly up to Boston from North Carolina for an in-person interview instead of a Skype interview because I wanted to see BC's campus. A few days before my interview, it occurred to me that BC had options to check out the school- coffee chats, class visits, information session etc. It was last minute, but I emailed the Graduate Admissions Office and asked if I could meet with a student. Luckily a First-Year student was free one hour before my interview for coffee.

There's a lot you can learn about Business schools from their websites, promotional materials and third party sites. However, you gain so much more from talking to a current student. What would life be like as a BC MBA? Could I imagine myself there? BC is a small program, would I like it? How could I leverage the BC network? Would I be happy at BC or would I be happier somewhere else?

The First-Year MBA I met for coffee answered all of those questions. And honestly. She told me what she liked and what she didn't. I felt comfortable asking her every question I could think of (I wanted the truth!). After 45 minutes, I felt like I had a pretty clear understanding of what it was like to be a BC MBA, the strengths and weaknesses of BC, and what I would get out of the program. (Thanks, Jaclyn!)

In the end, I had to choose between two great business schools and relied heavily on my coffee chat. I knew how the two schools looked on paper, and I could see myself at either one, but which one was the right choice? Luckily, I had met with students at both schools I was deciding between and compared their feedback on both schools and my gut feel from each.

After a few weeks of deliberation, I chose BC. At the time, I felt confident that BC was the right school for me and that I was making the best decision for my career because of my coffee chats. Now almost one semester in, I have no regrets and am even more confident that I made the right choice.

Who would have guessed that coffee would decide which B-school I would go to?

Chocolate Bar in Stokes Hall

Paying it Forward
Just as Jaclyn met me for coffee, I've been meeting prospective students for coffee at the Chocolate Bar in Stokes Hall (so delicious!) to answer their questions about the program and help them decide if BC is the right school for them. I valued honest feedback, which is what I try to give during my chats. I didn't want to meet with someone who would give me canned answers on how great the school was- I wanted to know what I was really getting into!

Advice for Coffee Chats: Come with Thoughtful Questions
Everyone has different concerns when they look at schools: community, specializations and classes, clubs, social activities, leadership training, field learning, and of course, careers. All of these areas are important, and to get the most information from a coffee chat, make sure you come prepared with thoughtful questions! It's hard to get a meaningful answer from generic questions like "What's the community like?" and "How are classes?" Although these are good starter questions- I'll tell you that I love the BC Community because the people are friendly, motivated, fun, and I learn a lot from my peers. But what are you interested in getting out of a community? Think about that when you go into the chat and ask follow up questions. Do you have X because I'm really interested in __?  The more questions you ask, the more you will get out of the conversation.

So go grab a cup of coffee- it's worth it!

Why BC?

by Lauren

I can't believe how quickly the last seven weeks have flown by! I just spent the last week crunching for final exams with my classmates and am relieved that they are finally over!

I'm excited to share my experiences over the next two years with you through this blog. Since this is my first post, let me start by telling you a little bit about myself and how I found myself pursuing an MBA at Boston College.

About Me:
I grew up in a suburb of Boston and went to Colgate University, earning my bachelor's degree in Political Science and History. Not yet ready to return to Boston, I moved to North Carolina (a big move for me!) to work in business development and marketing for an International Development non-profit. Now, you might be wondering, what exactly does that mean? It means I worked for a U.S. Agency for International Development contractor that designed and implemented programs to improve health, education, and governance systems in developing countries.

Raleigh, NC, 

I loved the work of the non-profit, but realized I was also passionate about marketing. So after two years, I made a career switch and started working in the marketing department for a pharmaceutical manufacturer. There, I had my hands in everything from event management, to online advertising, campaign development and other marketing activities.  I was also heavily involved with the National Multiple Sclerosis Society- Greater Carolinas Chapter in my free time. I loved it!


Why an MBA? 
I chose to get an MBA to advance my career. In my last job, I found myself struggling to understand some parts of the business, and realized that if I wanted to run my own department, I needed to have a better understanding of business and management. I saw a gap between where I was and where I wanted to be in my career. I knew an MBA would give me the skills, education and experience to get there more quickly.

Why Boston College?
I chose Boston College for a number of reasons, but the number one reason is the people. I was blown away by the sense of community I felt among the students I met. Everyone was engaging, motivating and had interesting backgrounds. BC is also one of the few schools I looked at that requires MBA students to complete a community service requirement.  Giving back to the community and being a part of the community has always been important to me and something I really enjoy, so I knew that BC would be a good fit for me.

Photo Courtesy of Boston College

The second reason? Boston! It's a great city with tons to see and do. Not only is it a fun city, but also it's the city I see myself ending up in after I graduate, and I wanted a school with strong connections in the Boston community. My family is also in the New England area, and I wanted to be closer to them.

The third reason is that once you're an Eagle, you're always an Eagle. Alumni networks are powerful, and BC has one of the best. It was important to me to be able to tap into an alumni network while I explore internship and job opportunities. While I also see myself ending up in the Boston area, I also wanted to go to a school with national connections, and there are BC alumni groups everywhere!

Great Decision!
It has only been seven weeks, but I already love Boston College! For a small program, there are a lot of events, information sessions, and activities going on. There's no shortage of things to do and resources to take advantage of.  So far, so good!