It’s now mid-July and my classmates and I have been in the program for a little less than two months. In this time not only have we completed the bulk of our core courses, we’ve been kept on our toes by the staff at the Career Management Center who are fully intent on getting us prepped to hit the ground running this fall.
Last month at the end of our module one (Accounting and Economics) we had our first corporate briefing and got to meet with two recent Johnson School alums currently at the Corning Corporation. This was my first corporate briefing—starting with a company-sponsored lunch and culminating in a question-and-answer segment with the Corning Representatives. It was a great opportunity for all of us to ask questions, try our pitches, and both make and learn from our mistakes in front of people who had actually been in a our shoes just a few years ago.
We’ve just finished off another module, this time in Finance and Strategy, and have had a week packed full of interview prep! There were a number of workshops all weekend focusing on everything from a course on how to Ace the Case Interview to getting a Smart Start in Consulting and even a chance for everyone to brush up on their business etiquette.
Above: A sample of the current AMBA class in professional business attire post-meeting with business etiquette coaches.
Additionally, this week we got the chance to take what I would say might be our most terrifying challenge to date-- mock interviews with coaches from NovAspire recorded forever on DVD for us to all take home and review. The interviews took place over two days served as a chance for us to get grilled, and then watch ourselves being grilled on video. If that doesn’t sound scary to you, just wait until you get the chance to watch yourself on tape. After the interview, we got to hear feedback from both the coach and our fellow classmates. The end result is that you get to see yourself the way other people see you and in turn, learn a lot about the way you might behave in an interview setting.
In my two months since arriving in Ithaca I’ve learned more about the business world than I could have imagined, not only from workshops and simulated business interaction through mock interviews and corporate briefings, but from my fellow classmates’ experience and knowledge here at the Johnson School. I’m still learning, as interview season looms ever closer I know I’ll need more than a snappy suit and a bit of luck to land a job in these times. I also am confident that I’ll be ready.
