Undergraduate Blog / Career Development

Overheard in the Recruting Lounge #5

OVERHEARD IN THE RECRUITING LOUNGE is a weekly feature on things going on in the recruiting side of CCD.

Happy Halloween guys and ghouls.  This week we heard a lot about tricks and treats.  Let’s start with the tricks.

“Company ABC invited five of us back for second rounds, but gave no one offers.  Why are they jerking us around?”

“Company QRS didn’t select any of my friends for interviews.  They must not be interviewing here anymore.”

“Company XYZ cancelled their on campus interview date, they must not be hiring.”

Working closely with the employer community, CCD can often validate whether these sentiments or true or false, but that’s not the really the important issue here.  What’s important is how you react to these bits of news.  And therein lies the treat.  A professor once told me, “negative attitude, negative experience.”  So turn that frown upside down!

So let’s take the first statement:

“Company ABC invited five of us back for second rounds, but gave no one offers.  Why are they jerking us around?”

Well yes, you can take a negative spin on this and think the company is jerking students around or you take a postive approach.  Trust me, as a former recruiter, it takes a lot of work to plan super days, so you’re not going to throw one and not extend offers just for giggles.   There are many reasons why you and some of your peers may have not been extended offers:

  • Luck of the draw; a few number of slots for a large number of candidates and no one from Babson made the cut.
  • Offers haven’t been extended yet.
  • Changes in the needs of the business
  • AND more…

What about statement 2: “Company QRS didn’t select me or any of my friends for interviews.  They must not be interviewing here anymore.”  My position on this statement is similar to the prior statement.  In both instances, if you’re really concerned about why you didn’t get the offer/interview, contact CCD or contact the recruiter.  Perhaps there was something in your resume or cover letter that was off that we can help you with.  Perhaps there was something in your interview style that didn’t work for that company.  There could be a number of reasons, but you won’t know if you don’t ask.

“Company XYZ canceled their on campus interview date, they must not be hiring.”  There are a myriad of reasons why employers may cancel on campus interviews. Low application volume.  Lack of interviewers to meet on that date.  Change in hiring practices.    If  you’re genuinely interested in the company, contact CCD.  We might be able to tell you why the employer canceled or direct you to someone in the organization that you can continue to express your interest to.

In all these instances, don’t forget alumni are your allies.  (That’s why it rhymes.)  Maybe you know someone that graduated last year, working at Company ABC.  Reach out to them throughout your process.  These alumni often get the real deal on company hiring practices and may be able to tell you how many available slots the company is looking to hire for or why you may or may not have been selected for an interview/offer.

Manage your process.  Control what you can control.  Stop speculating and start building reliable information that you can use to help modify, tweak, and improve your job search.

Someone once told me, “The only thing worse than having a job is looking for one.”  They sure weren’t lying, were they?