Students on the Blog: How to Get Into Graduate Accounting Societies
By Derek Berezdivin (MS Accountancy ’16)
Accounting societies at Zicklin are great. Besides giving you a
community, it gives you great access to recruiters and professionals, a strong
network, and a way to differentiate yourself on your résumé, which
recruiters at Baruch regularly admit to looking specifically for.
But this post is
not about WHY you would want to join;
it’s about HOW. Along with
having been accepted into one of these societies myself, I was recently part of
the team that screened candidates and
helped choose new Board members. I have boiled down the important steps to take, the way
our interview process works, and what almost anybody could do to get in.
1st stage: The General Meeting and volunteering
The first step to obtaining membership is to attend the general meeting at the beginning of the semester,
which, though optional, is
recommended. Next, learn about
the position, like who you will report
to and the reality of the position’s
duties. Surprisingly, many candidates do not know what the position actually entails; either because they make assumptions based on the title or
are misled by the language used
to describe the responsibilities. For instance, Internal Committee (IC) of
Event planning isn’t necessarily about being an event planner; it’s closer to
event support. Also, certain
positions will require more commitment
than others, so it’s important
to get a realistic picture of the tasks you will be performing and how many
hours per week you can expect to devote.
Volunteering and attending social events is a great way to stand
out if you want to be on the board. This is not only true on paper, but in
reality. When choosing candidates for Board positions, remembering a volunteer
made us much more likely to interview him
or her, especially if we felt he
or she would be a good fit (often ascertained after working at events with the
individual). Social events are another good way to make your personality
known to Board members. Like any job, we'll
be spending a lot of time together
and therefore look for the right
personality. In that vein, we notice people who carry themselves in a professional manner and are friendly and easy to
relate to.
2nd stage: Resume selection
This is usually the hardest part for candidates to get through. This
semester, we received nearly 60 applications, and had to narrow it down to 15
or so candidates. There are specific minimum requirements: a 3.0 GPA and the
possibility of being in ZGAS for more than two semesters (in this case, a
graduation date later than May 2015). If the requirements are met, we further narrow the list by looking for grammatical errors, strange job descriptions,
or a fundamental misunderstanding of the position and club.
It is helpful if
you make sure your previous experiences (work and otherwise) will show that you
will be a good Board addition. We aren’t specifically looking for a certain
amount of work experience, though more work experience generally means greater maturity, and therefore a better candidate.
In evaluating technical skills, we consider
any work experience (or skills) that could specifically relate to the position applied for.
Most students submit a standard
resume (because who wants to create a new resume for a club position?), however
it certainly would be advantageous to mention experiences that relate to the position applied for. Talk about something that will distinguish you from other candidates: for
instance we would like to hear about your interests or unique jobs you've had,
such as working as a bartender. Club and/or leadership experience is important as well, it demonstrates that you understand
how small organizations work and
are able to excel in such environments.
At times, we look for some specific qualities. Leadership is one
of those, so being able to demonstrate you have been in positions of leadership
in the past is a boon. In few cases, we look
to technical skills, for instance computer skills for our IT positions
or writing skills for our Editor-in-Chief positions. The rest of the positions are relatively general and do not require very specific skills;
however, being able to speak and write well are helpful to any position.
Remember, at some point
all business jobs/internships can start to sounds similar for those evaluating
résumés. No matter how impressive your résumé is, the interests
you detail can help you stand out. Think about it this way: are you more or
less likely to engage with someone who has similar interests as you? For
example, if you were looking for a position on the Communications Team, it would be a good idea to speak to the Vice
President of Communications or look them up and find out what they like, for
instance on the club website.
As is often the case with professional recruiting, many of the initial decisions are made based on your résumé, and as
with cover letters, the answers submitted in the application are important. Not
understanding how the club works,
and/or having different goals or expectations often indicate you may not be a good fit. Generally, you want to give
the impression, through your resume and application, that you are excited for a
couple good reasons, for instance, really wanting to help out the
student body or be a part of the community. In terms of discussing what you could
bring to the position, either state how your previous work or other experience
relates to the position or how you might be a useful candidate to us in this
respect. In my experience, we took an
interest in those candidates that knew how important it was to be
selected for the position for which they applied.
Final stage: The interview process
The last hoop candidates have
to jump through is the interview
process. Generally, the most important qualities to demonstrate are friendliness and enthusiasm
(always smile!). Preparation is important, such as being able to show you
understand the position and the club. From there, being able to explain why you
want the position and how/why you can do a good job are crucial. After the
interview is over be sure to have questions. Treat the interview as you would one for a job; we expect
candidates to dress in traditional interview attire and conduct themselves
professionally.
Candidates that present themselves well, are likeable, and show
that they would be an asset are chosen. Interviews are generally one of the few
places you can show your personality, so if you’re not good with interviews you should present your personality to
us in other places (such as the aforementioned volunteering and social events)
and/or practice with GCMC. Generally speaking, organizations and people often prefer someone they do know as opposed to someone they don’t.
This is why it's important to network
and make your presence known.
Finally - don’t
forget that thank you note! Thank you notes are an easy way to distinguish
yourself. Just because this is a club doesn’t mean you shouldn’t put forth your full effort.
Remember, even if you didn’t get chosen, there’s
always next semester. If somebody is dedicated enough to volunteer despite
being turned down, they will very likely be admitted in the next election. So
keep your chin up, there’s
always plenty of ways to get involved!
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