Lynne Sarikas, who’s worked in the trenches outside of higher education, reminds MBA students – and everyone else – to manage their expectations when job hunting (cba.neu.edu/lynne-sarikas).
One candidate, keeping a critical question to himself until after being offered the job, asked about relocation benefits. “The recruiter was puzzled,” Sarikas says, “because the student lived just 15 minutes away.”
Another student brought a nine-page resume to an interview. Did he consider his experience that compelling? Perhaps not. Unable “to summarize and discern the key points relevant to the hiring manager,” Sarikas remarks, he gave the team nine pages of reasons to laugh about not considering him.
One applicant who interviewed beautifully nonetheless followed the dictum of “be yourself” a little too literally and lost out. “He leaned way back in the chair, at times,” Sarikas reports, “rested both forearms on the desk and at one point even put his foot up on the desk.” A little too cool? He also showcased his boundary problems.
Finally, she cautions job seekers to be alert to Murphy’s law: “You never get a flat tire unless you’re on your way to an interview. The parking garage is only full if you’re late. Expect the unexpected and prepare contingency plans.”
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