Students Working with the GCMC: Self Assessment and Boosting Confidence

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Luisa Diez, MBA '20

After graduation in June 2020, right in the middle of the pandemic, I realized that the job-hunting process was not going to be easy. I needed to do it strategically and decided to work hand-in-hand with my career coach at the GCMC.  I can highlight two things in this process:

 

First, understanding what I am good at and what roles I could be a good fit for is key. Not every position is for everyone, and I am not the best fit for every single open role. So what is a good starting point? Self-assessments.  The MBTI and StrengthsFinder tools provided by the GCMC helped me narrow my job search. It also boosted my confidence in answering behavioral questions, and now I speak with certainty about my strengths, work preferences, and capabilities.

 

Second, prepare, prepare, and prepare! I cannot count how many times I have told my elevator pitch to my career coach, yet it has helped me to be ready when the “tell me about yourself” question hits in an interview. The GCMC was critical in structuring and making my pitch stronger to stand out even in group interviews.  

 

As graduate students we usually take interviews for granted because we have gone through the process before and are confident enough about our previous professional experience. Yet, there is always room for improvement in doing introspective work to boost your self-confidence, that will result in more successful interviews. A good job-hunting process is not an easy task, it requires help and that help is called the GCMC, the best free partner you can find!


Connect with Luisa:
LinkedIn: Luisa Diez

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The GCMC offers Zicklin graduate students and alumni a suite of services that includes individualized career advisement and assessment, as well as strategic workshops and training to assist graduate students and alumni in building a career through personal branding, effective communication, and successful networking techniques. 

Our services span many areas including:

  •     One-on-One Advising
  •     Drop-In Advisement Sessions
  •     Self-Assessment Tools
  •     Mock Interviews
  •     On-Campus Recruiting
  •     Job Search Groups
  •     Social Media Channels

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