Shreya Mishra Reddy

#Referrals play a very important role in your job hunt & #hiring. I spoke to official sources to understand referrals better. Here are a few things you could keep in mind:

1. Candidates are divided into three pools generally: internal candidates, external candidates with referrals & candidates without referrals.

2. The first preference while applications are being reviewed is given to internal candidates, then to external candidates with referrals and then candidates without referrals.

3. Generally speaking, external candidates with a strong referral from a senior person is given slightly more weightage/preference while initial reviewing compared to external candidates with a referral from a new lateral joiner or someone who's a fresher. The weightage given to categories of referrals may also depend on various other factors, such as the tenure of the person who's referring you.

4. A strong referral can only come from people you've worked with, who know you very well and can vouch for your abilities, work ethic and character.

5. Asking strangers for referrals on LinkedIn, especially if you've never spoken to them or talked to them before is not a great idea, because not everyone is comfortable referring candidates they can't vouch for.

6. Referring someone is a personal decision and no one on or off LinkedIn should be hounded for one. It's best to develop a relationship with someone before *requesting* them for a referral rather than flat out demanding one.

7. Despite the preference given to internal candidates & external candidates with referrals, ethical organizations will only select people who are best for the job.

8. I got the majority of my call backs from #bigtech as well as my present job as a program manager without a referral, so if you don't get one, it's certainly not the end of the world.

9. My advice is to reach out to people who know you very well & ask them for one because not only will you get a strong one but you will also end up saving time because the response rate will be much higher & faster, and that's why relationship building is one skill you need to master.

There's a lot of uncertainty & anxiety in the market right now, so if you found this post helpful, please share it & engage with it so your network can also benefit from it. We need to be there for each other right now!

Good luck!

#TPM #jobhunting #referral #networking #networkingtips #internationalstudents

The biggest disadvantage I had as an international student at Duke University was that of being in a Spring batch, because it meant I couldn't do a summer internship due to visa restrictions.
I had underestimated how crucial a summer internship would be, especially given the fact that most students who graduate in the US end up taking the offer that gets extended to them after a successful summer internship completion.

In my case, my inability to do an internship was an even bigger miscalculation than anticipated, given the struggling world economy and my graduation timeline, which was a year from starting at Duke, unlike most of my peers, who had a year and half!

I tackled this disadvantage strategically.

In April 2022, which was the last month of my spring semester, while I was already drowning in final project submissions, exam preparations and final presentations, I understood that although I was going to lose out on an opportunity to bag an offer from a company via an internship, my only choice was to pursue meaningful work within Duke, which would add value and weight to my profile and CV. So, along with my April deadlines at school, I diligently looked for job openings within Duke and applied to the ones that fit the bill. The most coveted job on campus was the position that entailed implementing project management innovation at the Office of Provost at Duke, the highest office within the university. I applied, went through several rounds of interviews and a month later got the job!

Not only did that experience prove pivotal in my Duke journey in terms of recognition and boosting my morale, but was also a conversation starter for my full time job interviews for project manager roles in Fall.

In short, the summer position at Duke, which came from a disadvantage, put me in a position of strength, was extremely relevant to my profile, gave me the opportunity to do some amazingly meaningful work, and did as much for me that any other internship would have, minus a full-time offer, which was a given.

Moral of the story: Life won't always go your way. Many a times, you'll be at a much bigger disadvantage than your peers; how you turn that around is on you!

#studyabroad #internationalstudents #jobhunting #summerinternship

P.S. How beautiful is the Duke chapel in the backdrop?