For many international students, getting a job isn't easy. As an international student, I have also struggled to get a job I want. But there are ways to increase a chance to get a job. From my experience, "Informational Interviews" (remember X420?) can be one of them. Our positions, as international students, in the job market are unique and how we position ourselves in the job market is key to landing a job we want. This requires extensive research, and that's why information interviews are so helpful. Below, let me share my experience about "informational interviews".
From 2001 to 2006, I worked for a mid-size Japanese subsidiary of an automotive parts manufacturer in Columbus, IN as a Japanese-speaking sales staff. From one of my business acquintances at this company and through my job, I learned that there were better job opportunities in the professional services industry that targets its business to the Japanese-owned companies in the Midwest. Being an undergrad finance major (I was also a student of IUPUI at that time), I had begun doing "informational interviews" with people in banking/brokerage firms, had a couple of job interviews, and eventually had gotten a job at an insurance brokerage firm. However, after staying with this job for a rather short period of time, I decided to pursue my career in accounting profession for a better utilization of the professional skills and my bilingual skill. For this reason, I came back to IUPUI as a MSA student to acquire such professional skills - accounting education and CPA preparation.
By starting over the "informational interview" process, this time with accounting professionals, I came to the conclusion that there is an even better job market in this field (compared to my previous research in banking/brokerage firms) for someone who has bilingual skills. More importantly for my getting-a-job-I-want purpose, through the continued process of informational interviews, I was able to build my career plan, with my confidence, that I feel is my passion. After getting through the accounting recruiting season last fall, I accepted an offer from one of the international accounting firms. I am very happy.
As we know, informational interviews are very helpful means to get a job we want. Through this process, not only doing job research, we also learn how to shape our own career plans. From my experience, I believe that the passion and well-demonstrated career plan make the candidate stand out from the crowd at the interview. I've heard a partner of a local accounting firm make a similar comment about getting business (as a firm). So I guess these things - passion and a well-demonstrated plan - work well when talking to people. As an international student, I've also learned a couple of useful things that helped me increase a chance of getting a job I want. I am going to share these with you below, hoping they are useful to you too;
1) Do informational interviews (this is important!) - You learn a lot about the job/job market/how to network. Also, it improves interview skill/communication skill at the real job interview. We may not have enough real job interviews to practice, so practice at the informational interviews.
2) Read WSJ - This helps build professional and sophisticated vocabularies. I also recommend reading any career planning books to be familiarized with good vocabularies for job interviews (remember, English is NOT our primary language. We have to work a lot in this area!).
3) Utilize professors' office hours - Professors are full of resources, and the office hours are good research/networking opportunities. Try your vocabularies gained through reading by chatting with professors about the recent news from WSJ.
4) Build a good story that tells your passion and career plan - Repeating the informational interviews will help you do this. Get used to express your opinion in English in a persuasive manner as we do in our mother language.
5) Learn good presentation skills to demonstrate your abilities. Sometimes, expressing/demonstrating your ability/capability in the US has quite different form from the one we are accustomed in our own country. Watching good TV/DVD programs help build a good presentation skill (also increases vocabularies and a listening skill). I enjoyed watching the presidential debates for this purpose.
6) Tell your story by "communicating" with the interviewer - Practice in front of the mirror to improve your communication skill, or do interview practice with another person. Record your interview practice to check your progress. Pay extra attention to your conversational skills (ex. articulation, accent, word pronunciations, grammar, formal conversational skill, etc - again, English is NOT our primary language. Try to reduce possible interviewer's distractions).
7) Be confident and positive (this improves your non-verbal skills). We are good and competitive as the other non-international students are, and demonstrate so in a positive manner. Always look for opportunities (any opportunities!) and be appreciative, if they are given, as they may open another door for you!
From 2001 to 2006, I worked for a mid-size Japanese subsidiary of an automotive parts manufacturer in Columbus, IN as a Japanese-speaking sales staff. From one of my business acquintances at this company and through my job, I learned that there were better job opportunities in the professional services industry that targets its business to the Japanese-owned companies in the Midwest. Being an undergrad finance major (I was also a student of IUPUI at that time), I had begun doing "informational interviews" with people in banking/brokerage firms, had a couple of job interviews, and eventually had gotten a job at an insurance brokerage firm. However, after staying with this job for a rather short period of time, I decided to pursue my career in accounting profession for a better utilization of the professional skills and my bilingual skill. For this reason, I came back to IUPUI as a MSA student to acquire such professional skills - accounting education and CPA preparation.
By starting over the "informational interview" process, this time with accounting professionals, I came to the conclusion that there is an even better job market in this field (compared to my previous research in banking/brokerage firms) for someone who has bilingual skills. More importantly for my getting-a-job-I-want purpose, through the continued process of informational interviews, I was able to build my career plan, with my confidence, that I feel is my passion. After getting through the accounting recruiting season last fall, I accepted an offer from one of the international accounting firms. I am very happy.
As we know, informational interviews are very helpful means to get a job we want. Through this process, not only doing job research, we also learn how to shape our own career plans. From my experience, I believe that the passion and well-demonstrated career plan make the candidate stand out from the crowd at the interview. I've heard a partner of a local accounting firm make a similar comment about getting business (as a firm). So I guess these things - passion and a well-demonstrated plan - work well when talking to people. As an international student, I've also learned a couple of useful things that helped me increase a chance of getting a job I want. I am going to share these with you below, hoping they are useful to you too;
1) Do informational interviews (this is important!) - You learn a lot about the job/job market/how to network. Also, it improves interview skill/communication skill at the real job interview. We may not have enough real job interviews to practice, so practice at the informational interviews.
2) Read WSJ - This helps build professional and sophisticated vocabularies. I also recommend reading any career planning books to be familiarized with good vocabularies for job interviews (remember, English is NOT our primary language. We have to work a lot in this area!).
3) Utilize professors' office hours - Professors are full of resources, and the office hours are good research/networking opportunities. Try your vocabularies gained through reading by chatting with professors about the recent news from WSJ.
4) Build a good story that tells your passion and career plan - Repeating the informational interviews will help you do this. Get used to express your opinion in English in a persuasive manner as we do in our mother language.
5) Learn good presentation skills to demonstrate your abilities. Sometimes, expressing/demonstrating your ability/capability in the US has quite different form from the one we are accustomed in our own country. Watching good TV/DVD programs help build a good presentation skill (also increases vocabularies and a listening skill). I enjoyed watching the presidential debates for this purpose.
6) Tell your story by "communicating" with the interviewer - Practice in front of the mirror to improve your communication skill, or do interview practice with another person. Record your interview practice to check your progress. Pay extra attention to your conversational skills (ex. articulation, accent, word pronunciations, grammar, formal conversational skill, etc - again, English is NOT our primary language. Try to reduce possible interviewer's distractions).
7) Be confident and positive (this improves your non-verbal skills). We are good and competitive as the other non-international students are, and demonstrate so in a positive manner. Always look for opportunities (any opportunities!) and be appreciative, if they are given, as they may open another door for you!
