THE SECOND YEAR SCENE : Ryan Chappell – Attending National Black
Constant soul searching occurs during MBA school is a requirement through this journey. Whether you are relentlessly pursuing every interview of opportunities you are interested in or weighing your options of offers you are stacking up like some of your ambitious classmates. I was in an interesting position when I walked into the overcrowded “sea of suits” area prior to the ribbon cutting of the career fair beginning at National Black MBA Conference in Houston, TX.
As soon as the ribbon was cut, countless students and professionals crowded in the George R. Brown Convention Center with more than one goal in mind. You may be thinking the ultimate goal is to gain an offer but many layers and networking go before that aspiration. First is the resume walk and conversation with members of the organization to “feel you out” if you have the ability to speak to your accomplishments and how you would be a fit. Particularly in the second year, how did your internship go and why are you looking outside that experience are particular questions I was asked when talking with recruiters from various companies. Often times, starting with a “warm up” company to become grounded in this type of recruiting process was crucial in talking to companies I would actually be interested in. Going up to that company I was ready with my resume walk and sharing my skills I gained during my internship at Frito-Lay in marketing.
After sharing my experiences, I was asked to do an impromptu interview where I was passed around like a basketball. After a few people had vetted me, I was offered an interview. The day was great but the night was a great experience as well. The party sponsored by Diageo is an opportunity for MBAs from all over to socialize with great music and libations and enjoy a great meeting of the minds from around the world. After that great experience, I had my second interview with another company I gained from networking with my classmates who interned at that company the previous summer. One thing I can say about my classmates is that we constantly help each other and push each other in so many ways. Both interviews went great and ultimately, the result I decided on is going back to PepsiCo at Frito-Lay to start my career as an Associate Marketing Manager. One of the greatest days as part of my experience was being able to sign my offer letter to the career of MY choice and nobody else’s thoughts or ideas of what I should be doing in my career.