Perusing Career Servics more and more.....

I like the fact that they have guidelines for when we're out in the real world after we've graduated and we're looking for a job in our field. I like what was mentioned, too, about internships and how we should show initiative, even if we don't have anything specifically assigned to do. Another document that I've recently discovered that can help Berkeley students is the "Classic Interview Do's and Don'ts" (or, what to say or not say or do or not do). Many of us feel that we can ace an interview simply by telling the employer what we think he or she wants to hear, but it's often these very responses that can sink us before the interview is even over.

My favorite experience is the experience of the gentleman who told his prospective employer that he left his last job because his boss was a "snotty little rich kid who went to Haa-vud law school"...only to find that his prospective employer was, himself, a Harvard graduate. It also helps to do a little research on the company, a lesson learned the hard way by a young woman who interviewed for a position with Pizza Hut, which is owned by PepsiCo. When offered a beverage, she asked for a Coke; both she and the job were history.

Another thing that is common interview ettiquette--that many of us fail to even take notice of--is the thank-you notice. Even if we don't get the job, we thank the employer for his or her time and consideration, so that we may be thought of favorably the next time a job opens up with that particular firm.