You’ve gotta make your choice

Part 1. How do you decide which companies to aim for during campus placements?

This is probably the hardest step while preparing for placements and yet it is usually the most neglected one. Why you ask? Because it’s pretty difficult to figure out what you want to do for the rest of your life when you’re just 20 something and don’t even know what all the possible career options are. That’s completely okay. Almost everyone is facing a similar dilemma. This article aims to help you through the process.

Some important points to keep in mind during this whole process–

1. Your first job isn’t the only job you’re going to do. Most people I’ve met have figured out what they eventually want to do 3–4 different jobs later . That being said, the earlier you figure it out the easier it is to start putting efforts in the right direction.
2. Not getting your dream job (or whatever you believe to be your dream job) is not the end of the world. I can not stress this enough. Yes you might have a plan, yes you might have some goals and ambitions. But they need to be flexible and you need to constantly adapt to changing circumstances. There are numerous ways to reach the end goal. These alternative paths should be a part of your plan.
3. Campus placements have a certain randomness associated with them, nobody can deny that. It’ll matter whether you get the first interview slot or the last. The only way you can protect yourself from this randomness is if you have fall back options. Always have fall back options. Never ever say “I’m definitely not going to work for this company.” You just might have to. And then that statement is going to come back to haunt you.
4. Accept the fact that you have to make a decision with whatever information you have at hand at this particular point in your life. Running away from this decision is the worst thing you could do. Accept that you will never be able to completely understand everything about all kinds of jobs in the world. Then go on to research and find out as much as possible.

The process explained below is what I did, there might be a better way to figure it out. Do let me know if you think it can be improved in some way!

Step 1. Know the difference between your preferences and biases
You’ve been in college for three whole years now and definitely have some opinions regarding different job profiles. In my opinion, there’s a very subtle difference between preferences and biases. A preference is built when you’ve done a particular type of role or done indepth research about it. With this rough idea, you then go on to have a positive or negative opinion associated with the role. A bias on the other hand stems from other people’s opinion about the the job and the usual hype associated with Day 1 companies. Acknowledge your preferences and be aware of your biases.

Step 2. Understand yourself and what you aim to achieve in the long run
The key to being happy with your job is to understand what truly matters to you and you alone. These are your core values, they define you. Core values can vary greatly from person to person. Choose yours very carefully because throughout your life you’re going to be assessing yourself on these parameters. What is that matters most to you? Is it making as much money as possible or work life balance or being your own boss or maybe doing creative and stimulating work everyday? Sit with yourself and make your own list. Be as comprehensive as possible. Imagine difficult situations that might arise in a job and choose which tradeoffs you’d be okay with making. Again, as time progresses some of your core values might change. You might want to have a better work life balance in the future but are okay with making a tradeoff at the moment. Be cognizant of this and make a note againts those values you think might change in the future.

Quite a few of you might have some goals you really really want to achieve. These are your burning desires. They can stem from either logical or completely emotional reasons, and that’s okay. Make a note of these goals and core values, we’ll use it in our planning stage.

Step 3. Make a long term plan using your core values and goals
Now that you have a rough idea of what you want to achiev in the long term, take a step back. Understand which possible routes could take you where you want to see yourself in the next 20 years. There’s never just one way. There are easier ways, but there’s never just one. Chart out these routes. You might not know all of these routes though. Head over to LinkedIn, browse through profiles of people who are in the place you want to see yourself at. Understand their career trajectories. Talk to seniors, talk to your parents. Find out as many routes as possible. While doing this, you should always remeber to account for your core values. Will you be happy in this route given your core values? Can you compromise on them? Try to avoid compromising as much as possible.

Okay, by now you probably know which kinds of job you should start with to reach your end goal. Or maybe not. Maybe you just can’t figure out your end goal. That’s okay. The next step should help you in either case.

Step 4. Decide which industries and companies you want to aim for
The Placement Blog contains a very exhaustive list of where each student has been placed over the last few years. Head over there immediately. Divide all potential companies (those which came last year) into different categories. It’s mostly FMCG, Coding, Finance, Consult and Core. Segregate companies which came to campus placements in each of these sectors. List down the names of alumni who’ve been employed in these companies. Go ahead and text everyone you know and even people you don’t know so well. Seniors are really helpful and will take out time to talk to you. Ask them what their job exactly entails, what’s the company culture like, what is a typical day in their job life like. Get a good idea of what the job comprises of and what are the growth options. Check these aspects against your core values and end goals and make a preferrence order amongst the industries and for companies within each industry.
Note: A lot of people choose to go for Masters, MBAs or further studies after their undergrads. If that’s an option for you too, analyse where it comes with respect to campus placements. Follow a similar research methodolgy to talk to seniors who are pursuing an MBA/Master etc.

Step 5. You have your list, now start preparing.
Ask seniors to share their resumes with you. Get a good idea of what is it that each company looks for in their ideal candidate. Ask them about the placement process and the kind of prep required for a particular industry/company. Campus placemets isn’t the end of the world. More often than not, it’s easier to compete against people from different colleges than just within insti. But it’s a unique chance you get. Never again (mostly) will so many companies come knocking at your doorstep giving you a chance to apply anywhere and everywhere you want. So give your best. Gear up and prepare for the companies in your preference order.
Note: Have a realistic estimate of how much time and effort is required to prep for a particular profile and can you prep for multiple such profiles while giving CAT too. I knew I could never give my best in case interviews if I also started preparing for CAT and Analytics companies. So I took my chances and only prepared for consulting companies. And that’s wrong. You should always have back ups. But choose wisely what percentage of time you spend between your goal and backup.

This is surely not the only way to figure things out. And yes, not everyone might want to figure it out. I personally believe though that it’s important to be aware of what you’re getting into and why, hence the article. Hope this helps! As always, all comments and suggestions are welcome. In case of any queries, feel free to drop me a message on Facebook or send me an email at shievani97@gmail.com.