So you completed your summer internship. Congratulations! While some of you may already know where you are headed after graduation, it’s worthwhile and helpful to reflect upon your summer internship and understand what you got out of the 10-12 weeks. It’s even more critical for students who are looking to recruit in the fall or spring before they graduated.
Blake Koch (Kenan-Flagler, ‘15) was kind enough to share his thoughts on his experience in his summer internship, and how he approached the recruiting process as a second year MBA student.
I had two goals going into my internship. The first was to learn as much as I could. While difficult to measure, I think learning should be a goal for everyone in their summer internship. The second goal was to get a job offer, whether I planned on accepting it or not. I had that as a goal, because I thought it would be a good measure of whether or not they deemed my work valuable.
I really loved my summer internship. I worked for a boutique strategy consulting firm called Triangle Insights Group, which does work in the pharmaceutical industry. I worked on a few projects over the course of the summer, but spent the bulk of my time on building an asset (drug) valuation model which would be used to help clients in business development discussions. I enjoyed it because the work I did was intellectually challenging but more so because of the firm culture. It was a fantastic place to work. The partners were demanding but always willing to coach and the other consultants were great to get to know. Breaks from work for ping pong games or watching the World Cup will always stand out as prime examples of why they were a fun firm to work for.
I think the best lesson I learned from my summer was that as an intern (and often a full-time employee), you’re ALWAYS being evaluated. Of course partners or managers are interested in the quality of work that you do, but I believe they’re equally interested in how you do it. You can’t get an offer by keeping your head down and producing quality work, as important as that is. They also want to see that you get along with co-workers and are enjoyable to work with. Watercooler chats and happy hours can be as important to your internship success as “doing work.”
2nd Year Recruiting
I had a somewhat unusual situation in that my wife’s company was just acquired and we were unsure where that would take her (geographically). The firm I interned with was very small and had just one office, and as such I didn’t know if I’d be able to stay or not. I was very open with them about my plans to recruit in the fall and why I felt I had to. Fortunately, I had a better story than, “I want to see what else is out there” and I kept them up-to-date throughout my recruiting process.
During the fall of my second year, I was much more focused in my full-time recruiting effort as compared to my internship recruiting. As a first year, I probably applied to over 30 positions, many of which I had little interest in. As a second year, I applied to fewer than 10 positions but I knew that there was something attractive about each of them. I not only more specific about the firms I was applying to, but I was also more specific in my interview preparations. I focused less on areas where I felt very comfortable (i.e. casing) and focused more on creating a compelling “story” that I could bring to interviewers. Fortunately that strategy paid off, as I had three offers in addition to my internship to choose from.
Advice
I think the recruiting decision as a second year is much more critical than that of a first year. It’s less risky to try out a new role that you’re unsure of as an intern. When looking at full-time opportunities, I think 2nd years should re-evaluate their personal and career goals and understand how their internship or other potential full-time opportunities accomplishes those goals. Of course if you absolutely loved your internship and had no reservations about wanting to work there full time, accept the offer and focus your energy on helping classmates secure their dream jobs.
Not everyone gets an offer, don’t stress!
I know it’s easier said than done, but try not to stress about it. You clearly know how to recruit, as you secured an internship in the first place. Just focus on understanding where you’ll spend your time and energy in recruiting. When I was a first year, a second year told me the key to getting a job is “high hustle, low ego.” I think this applies to many situations, and the job hunt is certainly one of them.