“Dear Judge Drewdy,
I worked all semester trying to get an internship for the summer (or at the very least the next school year) but to no avail. I am an A student who participates in several extracurricular activities, but I can’t even pass the interview. Am I doing something wrong? What should I do if no one accepts me?
Rejection — among the many all-too-familiar modern problems of straight men indiscriminately with Tinder profiles — remains by far the most personal blow for anyone yearning for a corporate apprentice. A simple email containing the words “no” or “moved on with –” can elicit the most drastic thoughts of inadequacy. Did I choose the right major? Am I destined for mediocrity? Did my parents prepare the basement for the long term?
But I’m here to help keep those thoughts at bay. As undistinguished as this straight man may be, I hope that at the end of this exhausted list, I can make you a distinguished candidate for any company (or perhaps another relevant entity). But first, let’s start with the basics:
resume
The presentation of a CV is, above all, essential to find yourself in a room with your potential interlocutor. Think of it as an extension of yourself in costume – the first impression you give when you walk into a room. The slightest typo in a resume will always end up in an interviewer’s room, right in the office trash can.
So pick yours up in the trash and clean it up. To do this, you’re going to want to steal a nice online version and copy/paste your qualifications into it.
Where can I find a good resume template? Oh, if only there was a hyperlink that could take me to a thousand resume templates I could build on (hint hint). Even googling”[desired career] Resume samples + templates” should do the trick.
Finally, flower the descriptions of the job descriptions you have written. Better yet, find the job description of your previous job and copy/paste that wording into your own resume. The result of this particular wording will be bold and pedantic, but it will make your resume sound like a corporate giveaway too good to be true – because it is.
resume
A brief word on CVs (for Cirriculum Vitae, whatever I know).
While a resume serves as a quick-and-dirty version of who you are professionally, the resume is the black box, the telltale cover of the wonderful utilitarian zombie that you are. Go ahead and add an experience you might not even have considered yet. Add it. Dove deep on YouTube one night and accidentally learned C++? If it’s relevant to the job, of course.
Here is another link for more examples.
Letters of motivation
Cover letters are a cumbersome practice that some companies have considered an optional addition to their application lately.
They are not.
Even if an application says a cover letter is optional or doesn’t require one, send one anyway. This will serve the dual purpose of personally introducing you to the hiring manager and showing you as the ideal and most qualified candidate for the job (and let’s be honest, even if you’re not). Printing a personal letter will be a game changer.
You can find templates and examples here.
It’s like Facebook — bear with me. Train yourself to think that anyone uses it. For your purposes, that rings true. Use it. Thank me later.
In essence, it is a walking business portfolio. This will attract KU alumni to connect as well as parties interested in hiring.
Try it. Live. Laugh it. To like.
Resources and Connections
Reach! Your teachers and advisors are dying to help you and see you succeed. Even if a company, friend, or mentor doesn’t have a “please disturb me” sign stapled to their back, take the initiative and ask them if they can help you. to achieve your goals. Better to be boring than sorry.
But more importantly, stay alert and alert to opportunities. LinkedIn and Indeed post internship applications every week. Keep an eye on the University Career Center webpage as they post internship opportunities, job fairs, and even courses to take that serve as internship and college credit.
An internship or career search can feel like adding another three-hour class to your schedule led by a professor eager to watch his students suffer. But by all means, persevere. Success in anything comes at the cost of failure. So go ahead and have the courage to fail at every step until you get there.
A burning question to ask? Report it to the court at [email protected]
