Oct 18, 2012
Career in focus: recruiting at Tuck
By Oksana C. T'14
Tuck was placed #2 in the Economist'sannual ranking of full time MBA programs. I’m personally incredibly proud, but at the same time I feel that it is well deserved. The ranking is based on four factors which The Economist identifies as the primary reasons students pursue an MBA: new career opportunities (weighted at 35 percent), personal development and educational experience (35 percent), increase in salary (20 percent), and building a professional network (10 percent).
Here I want to address one of the major two reasons: new career opportunities. I have been an MBA student for less than two months, yet, I can already testify that Tuck does an outstanding job providing MBAs with all kinds of career development assistance and information.
To be honest, prior to coming to Tuck I had no idea what the recruiting process looked like, nor was I aware that it would start so early. Of course, we were given some time to adjust to life at Tuck, and for the first couple of weeks it was just school.
In the middle of the short (but intense) four week term AKA Fall A…enter recruiting. On the one hand, it was very frustrating: I just managed to balance my academics, social life and personal time, when another hurricane (in the form of the company presentations that magically appeared in our calendars) came on and messed my perfect schedule up, on the other it was terrifying: “How do I fit THAT into my life?!” But there was another emotional component. I was extremely curious and excited. Being a Top Business School student is already awesome. But the recruiting kick off is the point when you become overwhelmed. You get to meet all these great companies you read/hear/know/dream about. And they come to your school because they want to hire you. How great is that?! But this is true of all top B-schools. What is so special about Tuck?
I would say that one (but not the only) incredible competitive advantage of Tuck is that people here genuinely care. Professors, MBA Program Office, Career Development Office, second year students, alums and classmates - all want you to succeed. It’s important in many spheres, but in recruiting it is crucial.
Apart from the routine stuff like reviewing resumes and providing access to resources, Tuck has done a wonderful job of exposing us to industries and companies. First, in the past several weeks I have visited lots of presentations – I’ve met 95% of my target industry key players and was able to qualitatively interact with the representatives in the informal setting of receptions after official presentations. Second, many Tuck alums who work at the companies engage themselves into recruiting enthusiastically. An important thing about Tuck alums: they are Tuckies forever and this means that they are brilliant, collaborative, loyal to Tuck and very responsive. Whenever you reach out to them, they come back to you and give valuable and honest advice. Besides, company representatives (most of them are Tuck alums,)come to campus frequently for coffee chats, lunches, and workshops. Finally, second years are amazing. A lot of activities are student run, and career clubs do a great job giving workshops, info sessions and organizing job treks. In the short three days of our consulting trek during the break between Fall A and Fall B we visited 11 companies in Boston. Visits were planned perfectly. We met partners and consultants, listened to case studies, were able to ask questions, see offices and get a sense of corporate culture.
In other words, even though the beginning of recruiting season pushes you hard, as I look back and see how much I've already learned in this process, I really appreciate what my school does for me, and especially HOW it does it.
A little bonus for us at the end of the trek: a gorgeous view of Boston harbor on a sunny day.
