Tag Archives: melissa

Academics, Events, Melissa, Recruiting

In defense of mock interviews

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Rishnie and I at our first MPA recruiting event!

Hello everyone! Recruiting season is officially here! This week was a relatively light week according to older MPAs and my audit professor, Professor Kachelmeier.  Regardless, this week has definitely taught me that time management is going to be ESSENTIAL as the recruiting season goes on. This week we had mock interviews, and company nights with a few firms. I will share with you three things that mock interviews taught me this week.

1. Don’t be nervous: This is KEY to the interview process. I can tell you that before I have even had my first ‘real interview’ because it is a universal truth that completely applies here. Your interviewer can sense your nerves. Sounding nervous can convey the message that you are unprepared, which is something that can quickly put you at the bottom of the firm’s prospective intern list. You have to remember that recruiters are people too.  Don’t be nervous because you think that they are judging you. They truly WANT you to succeed.

2. Be yourself: I think this little idiom applies to every aspect of life, however, I will explain its relevance in regard to mock interviews/real interviews. Basically what it all boils down to is that we are all MPAs.  Texas has the number one accounting program in the nation, and the recruiters know how well McCombs prepares us for our careers. That being said, your interviewer is really trying to discover if you would be a good fit for his/her firm. It is all about your personality because nobody wants to work with colleagues that they do not like. You must stay true to yourself because the “interview version” of you must be consistent with the “work version” or else you convey that you are not being real.

3. Practice makes perfect: There is no better way to prepare for real interviews than participating in a mock interview. If you make a mistake in a mock interview, you can fix it before your real interviews. If you make a mistake in your real interview, you can’t go back and fix it.

I strongly encourage EVERYONE to do mock interviews and please comment if you have any questions about the process!

Career, Employment, Events, Melissa, Recruiting, Student Life

“Grew up in DFW, lived in Paris, loves cycling”

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Tonight I attended the MPA: Building Connections workshop at McCombs. The workshop was led by Michelle Polkinghorn and she brushed us up on some crucial networking skills in preparation for the “Meet the Firms” recruiting kickoff this week at DKR Texas Memorial Stadium. For those of you who are not, or have not, recruited recently, “Meet the Firms” is an opportunity for students and firms to meet and connect with each other in a structured setting.

We were given a bunch of important tips but one particularly resonated with me.  When I returned home, I turned on The Office while I worked on some audit homework, and I was reminded of this tip and now feel obliged to pass it on to you all.

Michelle suggested that after talking with a recruiter, and receiving their business card, you should write on the back a few key facts about the recruiter or memorable talking points. Of course, this should be done out of view of the recruiter. Suggested were writing things such as “UT alum” or “Talked about our love for cycling.” Anything that will help you to create an actual memorable relationship with the person.

Tell me which sounds better:

1. “Oh, hi…do you remember me? We, um, talked before…at the event last week…”

OR

2. “Hello *recruiter’s name*, how are you doing? Did you ever get a chance to check out that bike trail we talked about last week at the brief and meet?”

I know I have a tendency to be extreme, but I hope you see my point.

Now back to The Office. This particular episode pits Dwight and Michael against each other competing for a big client. Although we can all agree that Michael can be a little bit radical and unreasonable in his business methods, he successfully employs this business card tip! In Michael’s case, he writes down facts about his clients’ families and likes/dislikes. Therefore, in a business setting, Michael delights his clients using the information he had written down.

Personal facts show his clients (and in our case, recruiters) that he cares about them and helps to maintain, as well as strengthen, their relationship.

My favorite clip from the episode reveals Michael’s thoughts on Dwight:

Feature, Melissa, Student Life

SOPA: what it means to this MPA blogger

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Google's response to SOPA

If you’ve visited Wikipedia, Google, or various other websites yesterday, you probably noticed their blackout/anti-SOPA messages and warnings. Before I go any further, let me just say that this blog entry is an attempt to explain SOPA in the most colloquial way that I can. I realize that there may be some missing pieces in my explanation.

SOPA stands for the Stop Online Piracy Act, which, on the surface seems to be a worthy cause. In theory, this act attacks something that is actually a real problem, internet piracy. The word piracy has a negative connotation and thusly initial public response would be that it is harmful. Haven’t we always been taught that plagiarism is wrong? Sure, the surface goal of SOPA is to stop foreign sites from providing users with pirated material and that is something the general population should at least try to support. And why companies such as Time Warner ARE supporting the bill. But, the repercussions of the bill would be far worse than just having to wait an extra week for the episode of your favorite show to be up on Hulu.

SOPA would have the biggest effect on any sites that use user-generated content. This may be why Wikipedia is so enthralled in the anti-SOPA movement. Other sites include Tumblr, Twitter and YouTube. Of course, this bill will not criminalize posting YouTube videos, per say, but it will hold YouTube to a new level of accountability and make it far more difficult to share and watch videos online. SOPA gives the Attorney General the ability to act against infringing websites without a trial or a court hearing and with that comes the ability to take advantage of this power. This would potentially cause more harm than the good that comes from intellectual property protection. Of course, SOPA would not go to the depths of some internet censorship such as that in China, however in practicality, it will have similar repercussions.

There have been attempts to stop piracy in the past- for example there are bills that have already passed that do exactly what SOPA is claiming to do and so, some believe that SOPA is unnecessary.

Of course, I am not supporting plagiarism or internet piracy. I go to a University with very high ethics and I plan to always stand by the honor code. However, I believe SOPA would do more harm than good and I hope that everyone takes a minute or two to get educated about the bill.

If this at all resonates with you, then please, do some research and find out how you can make a difference. Google has a few things to say about the bill and check out this full page ad that ran in the NYTimes a few months ago.

Please keep in mind that these are my own personal views, and may or may not reflect the opinion of McCombs or the University.

Academics, Employment, Feature, Melissa, Recruiting, Student Life

“Okay, employers don’t REALLY look at my Facebook, right?”

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WRONG!

YOU control your online persona

For me, Facebook has always been a positive thing- barring it’s impeccable ability to distract during finals week. Facebook is an efficient way to keep up with old friends and family, and to stay in touch with friends around the world. It is often entertaining, and merely a way for everyone to share their life with each other. However, Facebook is not all fun and games.

Facebook holds us all to a new level of accountability. There are countless stories of employees who have misled their employers. And now, in a world governed by social media, employees’ indiscretions are being discovered via Facebook. Take, for example, the story of Kevin Colvin, a NYC bank employee who asked off for a family emergency that just so coincidently landed on Halloween weekend. When pictures surfaced of Colvin in costume celebrating the holiday, he was promptly discovered. Many other employees have chosen Facebook as their channel of communication with which to rant about their employer, and thus are discovered as well.

While recruiting –and even when you secure a job– it is important to remember that your Facebook is NOT completely separate from your work life. Any online representation of you is free to the public. Anything that you post online should match the reputation that you are trying to withhold.

What it all boils down to, is that if you question whether or not something should be posted online, the answer is probably that it shouldn’t.  Be smart about what you post because you aren’t just sharing it with your friends, you are sharing it with the internet- aka anyone who inquires.

Sidenote: If you read through this and thought, “Oh, this is ridiculous. Obviously this girl doesn’t understand that Facebook has privacy settings.” Although a valid point, Facebook updates often reset your settings back to “default” (not private!) and anyway, it is better to be safe than sorry.

Employment, Feature, Melissa, Recruiting

Cities (Probably) Overlooked During Recruiting: Part 2

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Beautiful Boston Skyline

Greetings from Red Sox Nation, home of the Boston Tea Party, Beantown or whatever you like to call it. Clearly Boston is a city full of life (and United States History).

As I said before, Austin is a city with many accolades, but we should consider all the alternatives during recruiting. All Big 4 have offices in Boston!

The Skyline is beautiful especially at night. I’m sure many of you would argue that it holds no candle to the skyline of Austin, but I’m still a big fan.

Apart from the skyline, Boston has a lot of other great sites to see.

1. Fenway Park: I may have mentioned before that I am not the biggest sports fan (other than the Longhorns, of course.) But nothing beats the atmosphere and camaraderie of Fenway Park.  The park opened in 1912 and is considered one of the most iconic sports venues in the world. If you get the chance to intern in the city, I definitely recommend you check out a Red Sox game. And if you can, sit on the Green Monster!

My cousin and I on the Green Monster at Fenway

2. North End: Akin to New York City’s “Little Italy,” the North End is a historic neighborhood in Massachusetts that has been inhabited since the 1600s. The neighborhood is rich in Italian culture and DELICIOUS food. If you visit the North End, be sure to check out Mike’s Pastry- best pastries and cookies you will ever have! Continue reading Cities (Probably) Overlooked During Recruiting: Part 2 →