By: Brandon Levy, DePaul University Finance Major ‘19

As we get closer to summer, a lot of students begin to hit the market for a job or internship. It’s nice to make a little money over the summer, especially if it’s by doing something related to your career. (How else are you going to afford to go to Lollapalooza?) Unfortunately, securing a position isn’t always easy, as the market for jobs is very competitive. Knowing this, I scheduled an appointment with the career advisor for the Driehaus College of Business to gather some insight.

In preparation for the inevitable interviews I will go through on my quest for employment this summer, I decided to focus my meeting on techniques I could use to improve my interview skills.

Jumping into it, I was all over the place with my questions, inquiring what I should ask an employer, how I should conduct successful background research, and even how I should write an effective thank you note. No joke, before the meeting, I didn’t even know that writing a thank you note is something I should be doing!

To my pleasure, all the questions I asked were answered, often provoking a new question or topic for discussion. I was amazed at how much I was able to take away from the meeting.

Here are the top things I learned that might help you during your quest for employment:

1. When answering questions from a potential employer, figure out ways you can use your experiences to answer their questions. It’s an effective way to display the relevance of your prior experience to the position.
2. When conducting research on the company before your interview, don’t limit your research to just the company itself, explore the industry as a whole. One great way to do this is by following the organization and the industry using social media such as LinkedIn or Twitter. That way, not only are you well versed, but you are in the loop about relevant matters and issues.

I left the office with a variety of resources at my disposal including websites for interview practice or background information, and helpful attachments touching on the following:

• Questions frequently asked by employers
• Posture tips (yes, this matters!)
• Tactics for successful responses to interview questions

All and all, I highly recommend scheduling an appointment, which you can do on Handshake. Learn new interview techniques, improve your resume, or even work on an elevator pitch! I can’t see any reason why it wouldn’t be worth your time.