Surviving the Internship Application Process: Peer Support

“Don’t take it personally”. How many people who have been rejected after applying for a job have been fatigued by that consolation? Almost everyone. Being at London Business School just shy of five months, I have already been subject to the frustration from this phrase from my classmates. Yes, we are all in the middle of summer internship recruitment. Within the London Business School; bubble of brilliance (like any top business school), we are competing with the best. All the applicants are on equal footing: stellar GMATs, good grades, meaningful experience, a laundry list of accolades. With resumes of steel, competing for the handful of elusive jobs in London has gone from being difficult to borderline impossible. Despite the rigor, there is a silver lining to the process: peer support.

The reality is that in a class mix of a third consultants and a third bankers and finance employees, there is a tremendous amount of collective knowledge to help those transitioning into one of those roles. When I started this process, I felt naive to think that all that support would come pouring in at the time of preparation to make the process more bearable. Much to my pleasant surprise I was wrong. My overwhelming experience has been, people putting aside their own time-- hours of the day to help peers prepare.

It all started two weeks ago, when we began corporate partners week. The week comprised of back-to-back introductions: an hour-long company presentation, followed by an hour of networking. Armed with a good understanding of the company, role, and people at a corporation, students then took the time to submit applications. Certain rooms of the library had students camped out through the night working on cover letters, resumes and essays. Those not applying were accessible to review, edit, provide feedback, and in some instances bring dinner. Yes! Some peers brought dinner to save others the time of having to order and go pick up. The editing and the second set of eyes have been invaluable. When it is past 2am, ‘now’ and ‘not’ look the same, commas look like periods, and some action packed words have unnoticeably been repeated 3 times! Having people of the same calibre, look at your cover letter or resume and provide feedback is invaluable and gives one that extra sense of confidence just before clicking ‘Submit’ on the application.

The support though has not stopped there. Now in the next stage of call-backs and interview prep, it is a different kind of anxiety that needs more than just food and review to get settled. This is where the diversification in content began between finance and consultants. The finance students need to be fully up to date on their sources of information: WSJ, FT, Bloomberg, and practice being able to deliver a stock pitch, talk though any market and its trends and insightfully talk though the deal mechanics of an M&A. The consultants on the other hand, have to read the FT, Economist and other topical news while undergoing and becoming the expert on the Case and Fit interview process. Despite the diversification of preparation, the support has been key. Alumni and students from the class above have made themselves available to the interviewees preparing for these roles. It is up to interviewees to pick up the phone, send that e-mail, text or whats-app to ask, for help:

• Hey could you quiz me on the markets?

• Could you listen to my stock pitch?

• I need help with a profitability case. Do you have time to give me one?

• The last time I did a market sizing case, I messed up the numbers. Could you run though another one with me?

• I feel rehearsed when I answer, “tell me why consulting?” could you hear me out and give me pointers?

Rarely, if ever, is the answer no. Second year MBAs, alumni and former students in those roles, have taken hours out of their days and weeks to help fellow students prepare. It is remarkable—remarkable this week, this month, this year, last year and several previous years. Goodwill perpetuates itself. As someone going through the process, the key is to reach out, don’t be shy to ask for help. It is given, and eventually given back. Support though numbers is more powerful than any individual. It took the Greeks 8x17 pillars to construct the Parthenon— probably one of the main reasons it is still standing today.

Nisha is a first-year MBA student at London Business School. Prior to LBS, Nisha was a Vice President at Wells Fargo Bank in San Francisco. From 2011-2013, she was the Asia Business Execution manager for the Global Expansion Team. In this role she was responsible for licensing, product expansion, and executing other revenue growth strategies in the Asia Pacific offices. From 2007-2013, she was a Relationship Manager in Commercial Banking, managing a portfolio of industry agnostic clients, responsible for annual revenue generation of up to $1.2Mn. Nisha was raised in Mumbai, India, and has a BA degree in International Studies and French Literature from the University of California San Diego.