Looking Back: Corporate Roundtables Event

By Sahana Mukund – First year student, MBA Business Analytics

It was 5.45 PM on a Wednesday evening. I was suiting up for an event that was starting in 15 minutes. I had my resumes in place and was ready to go. This isn’t an uncommon scene for an MBA student aspiring to utilize every opportunity they can find to get themselves their desired job or internship. However, when someone else is equally invested in your success, there is no looking back. I am talking , of course, about the ever-enthusiastic team at Zarb Graduate Business Career Center(GBCS), which has kept me on my toes right from my first day at Hofstra getting my resume critiqued to preparing my elevator pitch for the Career Fair. And yes, GBCS Corporate Round Table was where I was headed to.

A select few employers were invited to share insights about their companies and basically discuss the potential opportunities available within their firms.What set this event apart was that it was a very small setting where a group of students got a chance to sit with each employer and have an informative conversation. There was a bell ringing after every fifteen minutes to urge the groups of students to move to different tables. I totally loved the concept of the Corporate Roundtables event because it definitely allowed us to speak to all the employers present at the event. I first got a chance to speak to an information services company and I was able to glean insights into the business and the company's career opportunities from this conversation. The intimate setting made it easier to discuss details and to share our resumes and business cards. At another table, the employer of a software solutions and support services company gave us insider tricks on how to ace an interview. Also, his precious advice of tenacity, flexibility and persistence was riveting, and reinforced my own belief in the importance of possessing these traits. It was time to meet the next employer at another round table. She spoke about the importance of body language and good dressing in an interview. There was a different flavor to every table and I thoroughly enjoyed my 120 minutes at the event.

Then, I was at the food counter relishing in the delicious brownies and marinating in the conversations that I had just had. I could see how important it is to be mindful and deliberate and to connect in these very close settings with potential employers. There were many take-aways from the event and it was a productive evening.

I would like to thank GBCS for providing us with this unique networking opportunity that helped me understand the specific views of industry leaders.

“A plan is a bridge to your dreams. Your job is to make the plan or bridge real, so that your dreams will become real. If all you do is stand on the side of the bank and dream of the other side, your dreams will forever be just dreams. – Robert Kiyosaki

My advice to all students is to work hard, network more and trust in the process.