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Adding fuel to the start-up versus Multi-national Corporation (MNC) debate, we discuss the pros and cons that both the entities have on offer for college interns.

“IIM Lucknow has a median salary of X INR!” 

“Great, but IIM Calcutta recorded (X+Y) INR last year.” 

“That’s nothing, FMS (Faculty of Management Studies) Delhi went all the way to (X+Y+Z) INR this placement season.”

More often than not, most of us have had similar conversations, which perfectly encapsulate the current rat-race involving institutions, companies and jobs in the country.

With the increasing number of access points of good quality higher education in the country, coupled with innovative methods of teaching going far beyond the pages of the academic curriculum, the past two decades have witnessed an enormous rise in competition among graduates and post graduates for jobs, both in the private and the public sector. 

This cut-throat competition necessitates the need for job applicants to stand out from the crowd if they wish to get a decent working position in a – preferably creamy layer – company, which means they need to stack up their curriculum vitae, or resume, the most prominent catalyst instrumental in landing them their dream job in their dream company, the importance for which was aptly described by writer Mokokoma Mokhonoana as, “Give a typical employee a million and he is most likely to use the money to print his CV on fancier paper”.

An ideal Curriculum Vitae (CV) of a fresh graduate or post-graduate contains, apart from academic and extra-curricular achievements, a list of organisations or companies where he/she spent time attempting to learn the particular trade, or in other words, worked as an intern. This list of internships gives the prospective employer examining the CV a fair idea of the applicant’s capability and area of expertise, and also a stamp of validation. “Sometimes your marks might not be able to land you a seat in a prestigious university abroad, or a prestigious company, but the right amount of internships at the right places surely can,” said a University of Delhi, Professor, on the condition of anonymity.

One’s CV undoubtedly holds a huge stake and influence in one’s future, and thus, an undergraduate student needs to take calculated decisions while choosing one’s preferred places of internship. With the country riding on a remarkable rise of economic and industrial growth, numerous successful start-ups have popped up, while already existing corporate firms have registered gains. A huge dilemma which students, mostly freshers, face, is making the choice between interning at a growing start-up or interning at an established multinational corporate. Both entities have certain distinct characteristics which might be a stimulant for some, and a deterrent for others.

Writing for Business World, Pulkit Jain describes start-ups as comprising of “casual wear, no-formalities-involved-group-discussions , no fixed working hours, fresh and flexible” while for MNCs he writes “formal wear, sophisticated meetings, nine to five on the dot working hours, prim and proper,” thus driving home the significant gulf between the work atmosphere and living spaces of both entities.

To the inquisitive and innovative intern with an entrepreneurial bent of mind, the flexible and out-of-the-box attitude of the start-up would be more appealing – though opining that MNCs do not receive such types of interns at all, would be a wrong assumption to make. Working at a start-up also allows for more widespread exposure to the corporate space and atmosphere for a new entrant, due to the relative absence of an in-built hierarchy. The intern will get to juggle a wider variety of roles, sometimes even highly critical ones, as opposed to the MNCs which mostly have a distinct horizontal separation of numerous departments and a distinct vertical hierarchy, and thus will offer a distinct and smaller role. 

But a valuable point to be noted is that working in a smaller role will allow for far more specialisation in that particular area of expertise and shall allow the entrant to perform well in similar roles in the future. A significant number of people would prefer to learn specific skills in depth, with a security net, one at a time, instead of trying to juggle and gain experience in multiple areas of expertise at once, though conversely the latter would have a considerable amount of takers too.

One area in which the MNC has sole bragging rights over the start-up is brand name and recognition – not taking into consideration extremely successful unicorn start-ups like Flipkart, Swiggy, Byju’s etc. While the start-up might provide an intern with an unorthodox set of ideas and new working styles, something which the MNC will not, it cannot be denied that work or internship experience at a well-established conglomerate, say Goldman Sachs, or Deloitte, weighs far heavier than one at a start-up, on a CV, and might turn out to be a clinical deal clincher when the candidate applies for a full-time job in the future. In fact, interning at such a place also increases the chance of the candidate being offered a job at the same company after his/her graduation.

A start-up allows more freedom in terms of expression of ideas, as opposed to the largely orthodox and time-tested work methods applied in the conglomerate structure. Thus, the risk factor in MNCs is low while its significantly high in start-ups. Outcomes are extreme in the start-up world, and a large proportion of them fail in the initial stages itself. Out of the small proportion which do manage to stay afloat, an ever smaller proportion is ultimately able to rise to sub-unicorn and unicorn levels, albeit in a short time. This can be beneficial for interns and new entrants who were a part of the start-up in the initial stages, who might get top designations in a very short while. On the other hand, in MNCs, the rise to the top of the company takes several years.

Every college student has different ambitions and attitudes, some are ready to take risks, some want a secure future, some wish to build their own company, some wish to work in their dream company. Interning at a conglomerate and at a start-up nurture these different paths for them. Japneet Singh, a Computer Science undergraduate at IIT Delhi, opines, “It’s not right or wrong to choose a particular option between the two, both offer valuable learning experiences and I think one should make the choice based on one’s needs and ambitions”.

Featured Image Credits: Analytics India Magazine

Araba Kongbam

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A résumé or CV is used as a prerequisite for evaluating a person while applying for a job. Given the amount of information it provides about the person, it is highly significant while making selection decisions. But is it really that appropriate as an assessment of all the niches of an individual?

The Curriculum Vitae (CV) or résumé is a document which is a brief description of one’s qualifications, experiences, interests, achievements, and so on. It would be safe to say that it is mandatory to have a CV for a college student in today’s day and age. After all, one needs the descriptive ‘paper’ while applying for internships, jobs, and now, even societies. But is it really an accurate defining medium? Once we get into the college, we are advised to get into extra-curricular activities and seek experiences by joining initiatives and projects. It is absolutely fantastic to have such kind of exposure because it helps us learn and develop skills.

But today, the nature of these documents has changed from being a depiction of the source of an individual’s development to a mere incentive or goal of having a longer CV Regardless of where we go, the professional world requires us to submit that piece of paper. The corporate realm can sometimes be so cruel as to reject an individual just on the basis of their CV, without any speck of a personal interaction or interview. However, the concept of looking into CVs is understandable.

A candidate who has been actively involved in ECA naturally might have more experience to develop better skills in comparison to the ones who are not involved in such activities. But by what means does it prove that the student who doesn’t have such experience isn’t competent enough? Someone with a comparatively “less interesting” CV might be interesting to talk to or be as good at communication as a student whose CV conveys so. Sandeep Samal, a DU student opined, “CV is the index to an individual. But it cannot define 2025 years of life and the experience one has.” Mason Cooley, an American aphorist once said “If you call failures experiments, you can put them in your résumé and call them achievements.”

Having your CV bombarded with experiences does not necessarily mean that you are good at what you did. Moreover, how can it guarantee that one will be good at the job they are applying for just because they did something in the past? That also raises a question of one’s competency to perform well simply on the basis of lack of experience? We have been taught that everyone is unique in their own different ways.

We are all capable of something. Then just because one does not have a piece of paper that seems relevant to the one making the decision, should one be deprived of the platform to demonstrate their capabilities? One may say that it is a standard measure to filter candidates from a big pool of applicants.

Yes, it certainly is, but if someone is simply being rejected or selected on the basis of a paper which may be far from accurate when it comes to describing how an individual is, will organisations not miss out on great talents too? Placement season frantically beckons third-year students to reduce their persona into a CV, and reflect their personality through a mere paper.

A CV is essentially a summation of what you have achieved in the past 18-20 years of your life, and you do not even realise the importance of it till you get into college are frenetically thrown into the world of ECA and exposure, owing to the sole and heavy focus on the academic culture in schools. Although this practice is needed in today’s fast-paced day and age, it is highly impersonal. To conclude how skilled an individual really is, there should be more elaborative skill-oriented measures.

 

Feature Image Credits: iamWire.

Karan Singhania

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I still remember my teachers in school detailing some horrifying instances of happens when you step out into the “real-world” where you’re no longer sheltered and where you’d need to fend for yourself. Despite our worries, our lives in college turned out just fine. While there was freedom to pursue our interests there also existed a security net for us if we failed.

However, as graduation approaches, the thought of stepping out into the ‘actual real-world’ seems daunting. There will be no teachers looking out for our interests or professors grading us on our answer sheets. We’d all have to, eventually, wear our adult pants and begin the terrifying process of becoming a self-sufficient adult. No matter how efficient you are at procrastinating, life post-graduation is nearing.

Yes, it’s time to become a real-life employed adult. Here our tips to help you ease into this frightening process!

1. Craft a Resume

 

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The first step to the long and tiresome process of securing a job is to build a resume of your accomplishments, talents and internships you might have pursued in college You can start by skimming through some formats, and then continue listing your most recent achievements.You can refer to our guide to slaying your resume, here.

  1. Stalk your college’s Placement cell

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Always stay updated with information about the upcoming placement sessions in your college. Don’t be afraid to ask your advisors to skim through your resume. They might not be experts in finding jobs for you, but they might just guide you towards your path to a successful employment.

  1. Look for job postings online

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Don’t just rely on your placement cells for availing job opportunities. You can also look for job postings online on portals like monsterindia.com and Naukri.com. Go to the websites of companies you’re interested in and search for anything that says “hiring,” “jobs” or “careers” (or it might just be surrounded by a mystical glow and flashing money signs). If you do come across something you’re interested in, all you would have to do is fill an online form and attach a resume and submit it.

  1. Create a LinkedIn profile

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When you’re looking for jobs online, LinkedIn is a good place to start. The platform helps you connect with people who have the same interests as you and it enables you in growing your network. Once you have an actual profile, you can highlight your key achievements and start branching out to build connections with people. You can read more about navigating LinkedIn to jumpstart your career, here.

  1. Call and follow up

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Whether it’s your career guidance cell or a mentor from LinkedIn, always make sure to follow up with them. If you asked someone on LinkedIn to go through your resume and they reverted with their recommendations, compile them and get back to them with a revised version of your resume. Connect with hiring managers and keep in touch with them for future job postings. Try to make an unforgettable impression so you can be remembered and you could be one step closer to employment.

To avoid being known as “that annoying kid that keeps calling,” it’s important to know when you should call. When everything fails use your own judgement.

 

While following these tips might prepare you for the roller-coaster ride mentally, nothing can truly prepare us for what lies ahead. Inevitably, for better or for worse, we will prioritize our lives differently. But no matter what happens or what we end up doing, may we always remember that it will be totally legit to still hate Mondays!

Image Credits: giphy.com

Feature Image Credits: quotesgram.com

 

Surbhi Arora

[email protected]

 

Final semester kicking in just a few more days, I’m willing to bet polishing your resume is right on top of your To-Do’s or New Year’s resolutions list. While those of us who’ve already been placed need to worry about this a little less, buffing our resume (or creating one *cough cough*) becomes a priority for those of us who will be sitting for placements in this cycle. While the perfect resume format is a myth, the internet is replete with good advice. But the amount of information available can be very overwhelming at times. For your ease, we bring you a compilation of the some of the best tips out there. Feel free to tailor them to your skill set or requirements!

1. Assess your skills

Being only an undergraduate student limits your exposure in the real world. While internships expose you to different kinds of scenarios, chances are that your overall skill-set will not be very different from your fellow classmates. How then would you go ahead distinguishing yourself from others? The only way you can do is by crafting your own brand, by marketing yourself in a way that an employer would want to meet you in person. It’s all about figuring your own individuality and finding possible job outlets in order to develop yourself further. You can start by pondering what skills and interests you do possess. Your interests and hobbies will guide you, and once you have an inkling of an idea of what you can do, you can start working towards establishing that goal.

2. Grow your network

Once you have an idea of where your interests lie, try to understand how you can market them. For example, if your hobby is bookworming, and you think you could make a good editor, try to understand how media works, or how the industry of Publishing is organised. Connect with people who’re already employed in the same industry, or who’re working towards similar goals. When you have a good knowledge of what your dream job actually entails on a daily basis, you can shape your resumes better by tailoring it to specific job requirements.

3. Gain experience

Most people believe your chances of landing an internship exhaust when you’re past your sophomore year. This is far from the truth. There are good chances of finding an internship post-graduation, if you’re still not sure of committing to a specific job yet. Try and gather as much experience as you can, with internships, field projects or research work in your field. If you couldn’t kickstart your career in college the past 5 semesters, you don’t need to suffer an existential crisis this semester.

4. Research potential employers

Many ‘perfect’ resumes have been rejected in the past, because the candidate’s skills and the needs of the employer are not the right match. So many people apply for jobs they have zero interest in for fear of being unemployed after graduation. A person who wishes to be in Editing and Journalism might never make a good accountant, and vice versa. Research potential employers in areas/sectors you’d like to work in. Look for what they seek in an ideal candidate and assess if your skills match to those requirements. Your resume should reflect your interests and ambitions in accordance with an employer’s requirements.

5.Build your resume/cover letter

Your resume/cover letter should reflect all the research you did. Content is king. Start listing several projects you undertook in college like being part of a society in college, including any volunteering initiatives in your college department. If you were elected in a leadership role, list down key achievements during your tenure. Make sure that when you’re done with crafting your resume, it makes sense as a whole. It should be cohesive and the information should flow easily. Make sure to proofread it for any grammatical errors!

6. Prepare for interview

While a resume can get you inside the glassdoors, a perfect interview will guarantee you the job and seal the deal! Take advice from your placement cell advisors. Several internship portals and channels on YouTube are devoted to helping students make a good first impression. Take help from them, and continue to practice key interview questions.

The last semester as an undergraduate is an exciting and unnerving time. Being prepared is the key to making sure you never miss out on any fun, while at the same time landing a favorable job for you! Goodluck for the upcoming placement sessions!

 

Feature Image credits: tkmce.ac.in

Surbhi Arora

[email protected]