Job seeking, internship seeking, summer job seeking, and part-time job seeking – these are all ways people strive to build their resumes to enter the professional world. As an international student from India, seeking internships or jobs in Europe is not a straightforward task. From curating numerous versions of CVs and cover letters, attending career fairs and job fairs, participating in webinars and workshops to shape my pitch, to practicing interviews – the list is endless – all just to find one starting point in the workforce.
The Ideal CV?
There are numerous websites where I search for job postings – LinkedIn, Highered, JobTeaser, Indeed – the list goes on. The biggest struggle is deciding what to include on your CV versus what to leave out. Ask five random people, and you’ll get five different answers. Everyone has their own tips and tricks to create the “ideal” CV, but what truly makes a CV ideal? No one knows for sure.
There are some common best practices, such as starting with a chronological timeline for the professional experience and education sections, highlighting your competencies in software as well as interpersonal skills, and quantifying your results from previous experiences using the STAR method. Then there’s the ATS-friendly CV format, which I find quite annoying and redundant.
Go Beyond Best Practices
I believe your CV should reflect your personality and resonate with the type of job profile you are targeting. I tailor my CV to each position I apply for. Aspiring to build a career in Brand Management and Employer Branding with a focus on communications, I infuse the company’s personality into my CV to make it stand out from the rest at first glance. I enjoy playing around with creative elements, so I add the brand’s colors or motifs to my CV.
This helps build my case in front of the recruiter when I say I am creative and passionate about brand management. Matching my CV to the brand enhances brand recall and brand resonance – essential concepts in brand marketing. However, it depends on who is looking at the CV – it might not matter as much to an HR professional as it would to a Brand Manager, for example.
Social Proof – Personal Branding
The next struggle in job seeking is proving why I am more suitable for the role than the next candidate. While quantifying your results provides proof of your achievements in previous roles, social proof is also important. Nowadays, it is common for recruiters and hiring managers to do a quick search on LinkedIn to get a sense of the candidate. This helps them learn about information that may not be present on the CV and cover letter, such as the topics the candidate shares, reports, likes, or comments on, and what other interests they have.
I claim to be a storyteller, but the claim is only as good as the proof. Therefore, I take time to build my LinkedIn network and stay active on it by writing posts that are meaningful to me. This adds credibility to my storyteller claim and showcases my content management skills.
Reflecting on my journey through the job market, I find that it was a path filled with both significant hurdles and rewarding successes. Each step of the way provided invaluable lessons that shaped not only my career but also my understanding of perseverance and self-worth.
Never stop Networking!
The not-so-secret sauce behind my success in securing an internship at a French industrial company last summer was my network. The adage “you never know where you will meet your future manager” rang true for me. My manager first noticed me at my graduation ceremony, where I was the valedictorian speaker for my Bachelor’s cohort. She was there to celebrate her sister’s (my classmate’s) graduation. Although we had never met, she applauded my speech.
The following week, I unknowingly applied to her family’s company, where she was the manager looking for an intern. Reflecting on this unexpected chain of events, I realized that it was indirectly my networking and public speaking skills that landed me the internship. This experience underscores the importance of engaging with everyone and leaving a lasting impression.
Takeaway?
My path to search for an internship was not linear, but each step taught me invaluable lessons about the power of networking and the importance of making lasting impressions. From consistently tailoring my CV to reflecting my personality and career aspirations, to leveraging social proof and actively building my LinkedIn presence, every effort contributed to my success.
What strategies have you found effective in attracting top talent? Let’s have a chat!
