Job Hunting Tips
Career counselors from NYU’s business school recently answered questions about the current job environment. Here’s a transcript of the chat 
Katie VolzStern School of BusinessNew York University
There’s no denying that the economic slowdown is worrying undergraduate business students and MBAs alike. Many soon-to-be graduates and internship seekers are probing for ways to protect themselves from being jobless or acquisition their career off on the wrong foot (BusinessWeek.com, 4/4/08). Some of them are turning to business school administrators and alumni to quell their fears.
Recently, at a live online chat event, Katie Volz (KatieVolzNYU), director of career counseling at New York University’s Stern School of Business, and Trudy Steinfeld (TrudyNYU), executive monitor of the NYU Wasserman Center against Career Development, offered advice to an online audience about keeping your career on road in every economic slowdown. They fielded questions from site visitors and BusinessWeek.com reporter Francesca Di Meglio (FrancescaBW) on everything from what employers muse of online MBA degrees to the fallout from the Bear Stearns’ collapse and sale (BusinessWeek.com, 3/20/08). Here’s an edited written copy of the event:
dee4u: I am every international student enrolled in a master’s program at OSU. There are rumors that a recession in the piece of work field will be over by October. How true is that? Does it have to do with the elections? Would it be better to delay my graduation till December?
TrudyNYU: No person certainly knows how long the downward trend in the system will last. From my experience with past recessions, I think October is very optimistic. If you detain your graduation, it may provide you with more time to secure employment, which can be more challenging for an international student.
julieh: What types of programs/initiatives does Stern implement to ensure the highest percentage of students get internship offers when the economy is behindhand?
KatieVolzNYU: On the MBA side, the Office of Career Development is dedicated to supporting each student on their conduct goals, both from a skills/interests and fit perspective, as well as in continuance the employer side—bringing as numerous company recruiters to campus as potential to interview our students. Just one week ago, we had person of our largest conduct fairs to date, which indicates that recruiters are absolutely showing a strong interest in our students.
TrudyNYU: Many of us at NYU and Stern have been projecting that the management would be slowing down this year. To make sure that our students had opportunities for internships and other types of job programs, we aggressively targeted employers that were somewhat recession-proof. We also made sure that all the employers with whom we had strong relationships would consider NYU and Stern students early on in the proceeding. It’s important to keep every channel open during periods of economic difficulty.
ayosha: I leave be receiving a BA in economics from McGill University (Montreal) this May and have decided to return to the States to pursue full-time employment. I intended to meet with a position in consulting or finance, but a family friend recently recommended I entertain the idea of applying for an MBA in professional accounting at Rutgers University. Do you think it is worth forgoing the suitable to get an MBA from a top-tier teach two to three years down the road to keep away from coming out of school during a recession?
KatieVolzNYU: While each student’s situation is singular, having the opportunity to gain several years of work experience preceding starting an MBA is usually highly valued to recruiters, particularly in finance and consulting.
From: Job Hunting Tips
