Reading 02

I began my internship/career search during my sophomore year here at Notre Dame. Through the career center and the online Job Search portal, Go IRISH, I was able to find job opportunities that sparked my interest. The use of resources has made the application process relatively easy and through that process I did receive requests for several interviews, received offers from a couple of those companies, and was outright rejected for even an interview by one company. I think the process was ethical and efficient, but it was frustrating and surprising to be turned down for an interview when my qualifications meet the stated criteria, and I was not given a specific explanation for being turned away.

Nevertheless, the past two summers I was hired after going through the formal process that Notre Dame recommends and I have had the opportunity to work in the IT department at a global professional resources firm. The first year internship job title was officially Business Analyst/Information Technology, so I do think that my Economics major, combined with my CDT minor, fit the job description fairly well.

However, honestly, I think a significant factor in me being hired by this major corporation was due to a recommendation made on my behalf by my godfather who was a senior member at the firm. While I feel that I was fully qualified to be accepted to the internship program, I am not sure that I would have been able to get my foot in the door without his recommendation. My major not being from within the Mendoza School of Business did not necessarily win any points for a job in Business or Information Technology. I believe that one of the key ethical issues faced by employers arises from situations like mine. How much weight should employers place on these types of recommendations in the hiring process? I do not believe that I was hired due to his recommendation alone, as I still had to go through the multi-interview and application process, and I was able to secure an offer for a second year of an internship due to my contributions and work ethic during my first summer there.

I do not believe I think of the interview process in the same way as most. For example, for my internships over the past two summers I had Skype, phone, and face-to-face, interviews. However, I think the most important interview in that process really was the evidence presented by a review of my entire life and scholarly events. If my godfather did not think that I was a hard-working, creative, dedicated and outgoing person, would he really have stood up for me and put his own reputation on the line and given a recommendation to get my foot in the door? I think that every day we are both, directly and indirectly, building relationships with individuals who may be able to help us in our career search and the importance of being at your best around those who may be able to help you on this journey is very important. I prepared for my interviews by reviewing my resume to remind me of the skills I had learned from each experience and I followed my parents’ recommendations on appearance - both clothing, demeanor, and facial hair.

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