As you go through the interview process it is important to remember that there are things you can control and things you can’t.

The things you can control include all the activities leading up to the interview: doing your research, talking to people who work for the organization and getting a good night’s rest. In the interview you can do your best to respond to questions and admit if you do not know the answer to a question. Before you leave the room you can ask for a business card and then follow up with a short thank you note.

What you can’t control is how the recruiter acts in the interview.

And, unlike being unhappy with a course grade, there is no appeal process if you don’t get an offer.

The interview offers you the opportunity to interact with a representative of an organization. One person may not adequately portray the values of an employer, but they are your window into the corporate culture for the thirty minutes of your interview. If  you find that you are not being treated in a professional manner, take it as a sign of what may lay ahead if you were to be an employee. If you don’t like the people who are interviewing you, you definitely will not enjoy spending hours with them in the workplace.

How did the interview go? Even the worst interview might have gone well if it helps you clarify your career decision.

Have you joined a professional association in your field? Have you attended a professional conference? If not, you may be missing our on a key resource to help you in your job search.

Most professional fields have one or more organizations that represent their members and their interests through professional development and lobbying on key issues effecting members. Most professional organizations have student memberships. In addition to large national organizations, many associations have regional and local chapters. You can participate via a website or sign up to attend a major annual conference. In this economy, you will set yourself apart if you attend. Most students do not join professional associations and among those that do, even fewer attend conferences. And yet, most practicing professionals would welcome the fresh perspective of new members.

Why join a professional association? It gives you a place to learn about the mega issues facing an industry or field. It also provides you with a chance to attend conferences, meet colleagues and possibly interview for jobs.

Let’s say you are a history major. The American Historical Association, founded in 1884 serves the broad field of history. Their annual meeting is in San Diego on January 7 -12. You can join as a student member, register for the conference and before the spring semester begins, you have gained some serious practical information about your career field. Interested in a career in Human Resources? The Society for Human Resource Management will also hold its national meeting in San Diego on June 27 -30.

Why attend a conference? To learn more about your career field and to make connections. You will attend workshops and listen to keynote speakers. You will get a sense of how many people earn a living in this field. You will learn about the challenges of the profession and hear about best practices. And, you will begin to understand what it takes to be successful. You may even gain some skills in the workshops you attend. But most important, you will talk to the people who sit next to you about what they do.

Take some time over the holiday weekend to do some research and find a professional association that fits your career path. Join as a student member and plan to attend a local or national meeting. And don’t forget to update your resume. You will definitely want to participate in the job center interviews held at most national conventions.

With this quote from  the NY Times bestseller, ‘Shop Class as Soulcraft, An Inquiry Into the Value of Work’, author and Ph.D. in Philosophy Matthew Crawford challenges us to rethink our perceptions of work and gives us permission to explore the manual trades as a life worth choosing.

This is required reading for every college student who will sit down to Thanksgiving dinner and be grilled by relatives in the annual competition to demonstrate how your college degree will gain you the job envied by all your cousins.

If there is one lesson of the economic downturn it is to take ownership of our decisions. There are things we can control and those we cannot. Our career choice falls into the first category. And it is our choice. But sometimes the expectations of others get in the way.

What does a ‘good job’ look like to you? If you have been on the interview circuit or are a serial intern, perhaps you have not found your connection. Could it be that you have unsuccessfully tried to separate thinking from doing? Time to revise your ‘good job’ definition. And don’t worry about what other people think. At some point they will notice how happy you are and wonder at your secret.

The book is also the perfect holiday gift for your parents.

Most student athletes commit 20 hours each week to their sport and an additional 18 to 24 hours to their academic course load. In a number of sports the competition continues year round. While competing in a sport can provide you with the team and problem solving skills sought by employers, how do you find time to learn about options and make the necessary connections?

Start close to home. Use any opportunity to ask people about what they do and how they got there. Next, get out of the athletic facilities. Your campus has a lot to offer and the students, faculty, staff and alumni are a valuable resource as you go through the career exploration process. Stay after class and talk to your professor. Register with your career center. Meet with a career advisor to develop a resume. Attend career panels. If you miss them, listen to the podcasts. Take the opportunity to use a course assignment as a way to interview professionals in a career field of interest. Offer to help a professor with their research.

Great ideas but you are going to compete professionally in your sport? Why be distracted by activities beyond the classroom and field? Because one day it will be your first day on the job and if you are 29 and have never had a job, it is not going to be a good day. And, all the 21 year olds who are starting the same day will blow you away. Not a good situation if you are a competitive person.

Look at your calendar. Is there a time of year when you could devote 8 -10 hours a week for 8 weeks to an internship? Carve out some time and start looking for your first internship. Once you have some experience on your resume you will develop a level of confidence that will help you compete with all the non-athletes in a tight job market.

Are all your friends athletes? Are the majority of adults you interact with on a daily basis affiliated with the athletic department? If yes, it is time to venture into the broader world of your campus. It is time to check out your opponents in this competitive job market.

Many students believe that casting a broad net will result in multiple offers. In reality, in a competitive job market the more targeted your search the better. Why? Because when your resume results in an invite to interview, it will only take a couple of minutes for a good recruiter to determine if this is a serious career choice or a fishing expedition. No employer wants to be the default.

How should you go about your search? Start with what you want to do. Research the field and the leading employers. This is not a five minute exercise. This is a project with a time commitment similar to what you would spend on your final college thesis. You need a lot of detail about each employer, their competitors, their customers and where they generate revenue. This applies to non profit and government agencies as well as Fortune 500 companies. If the non profit is losing funding because dollars are going to a different agency, this is not a good sign for the future.

Next you have to figure out what you would like to do with that employer. Most employers have human resources, finance, product development, manufacturing and marketing departments. If you are interested in marketing, what do you want to sell? And who do you want to sell to?  Again, don’t think the non profit is immune to sales. What is the story you have to tell to obtain a grant over others?

Where are the jobs you are looking for? Many job seekers narrow their search to a 10 square mile radius. As a new college grad, try not to limit your options. You can live anywhere for a couple of years to gain the skill set to return to your ideal location.

Don’t focus on the negatives. Consider your strengths. What can you bring to an employer that will help them be successful?

Now develop your story. Where do you want to work? What do you want to do? Are you willing to relocate? How will you add value to the employer’s exiting team?

Tell everyone you know what you are looking for. The more precise your description, the easier it will be for people to help.

It does not matter how many interviews you have. It matters that you get the one you want. And it matters that the conversation results in an offer.

Often we focus on what to wear to the interview. But have you thought about what you will wear everyday? And does that fit with your personality and image?

In preparing for an interview, you want to convey a level of professionalism. For most employers this translates into a suit. As you walk across campus you can easily identify the seniors heading to an interview, riding bikes and skateboards clad in black suits with backpacks. Ask for feedback on your interview outfit and avoid short skirts with high slits, outrageous ties and plunging necklines. And guys, don’t wear your roommate’s shirt unless you are a perfect size match.

Once you have been hired, do your research as you plan your working wardrobe. In most major metropolitan areas you will be more formally dressed at work. In the entertainment industry it will vary. If you are teaching, depending on the school you could be casual or formal. Don’t be afraid to ask for advice. And if you are leaving Southern California, you will probably need a coat, gloves and boots. Why is this important to think about in advance? Because your professional reputation starts to develop with the first impression you make on your work colleagues. And, you need to budget. A new wardrobe can challenge the wallet as you transition from student to full time career.

Use any opportunity to observe professionals in your field. Take your cues from both entry level employees and senior executives. There are some who believe you should dress for your next level. The main thing is to enhance your image, not cause a distraction. You want your managers to value your opinions and ideas, not be distracted by your ‘costume’.

And, if you are uncomfortable in the ‘costume’ of your employer, other things may not be fitting as well. It may be a small signal that it is time to change.

One shift in past years has been to an emphasis on teamwork. In an interview for the Corner Office column in the NY Times, Tim Brown the CEO and President of IDEO a Palo Alto based design firm says his best interview question for candidates is to ask who they’ve done things with. “And if they can very quickly give you lots of examples of what other people did, then you’ve got some hint about how collaborative they are. If, however, the answer is ‘I did this and I did that and I was responsible for that,’ and you get no sense of who they worked with and how they worked with them, I worry. Because then I see somebody who probably isn’t very collaborative, probably isn’t very good at promoting the ideas of others and probably isn’t going to bring talent out very effectively. They may be very inspirational, they may do brilliant work, but they’re probably not going to actually result in a more capable organization, which is what I’m looking for.”

Susan Lyne, chief executive of Gilt Groupe and former editor of Premiere Magazine and head of ABC entertainment feels that a key role for any CEO is recruiting. If you can’t attract talent, you are not going to succeed. In her interviews for a new hire “I try to get someone to talk about how they handle different challenges. So, depending on what the role is, I want to understand what their work style is, and I want to understand how they deal with a crisis, a challenge. Because everyone is going to tell you about what they have accomplished, right? That’s just part of the interview….I want to know what happened when something went badly, and what they would say were the most significant mistakes they’ve made along the way and what they’ve done along the way to correct them: What did you learn from it? How would you do it differently , or what would you say was the best thing you did in that moment of crisis?”

Clarence Otis Jr., CEO of Darden Restaurants wants to see someone who has passion and drive. “Being comfortable with ambiguity and uncertainty is a trait I look for, because those folks are pretty comfortable with diversity, and not knowing how people who have differences might react in a situation doesn’t unmoor them.  You ask them about the various experiences they have had and try to probe, where were those circumstances where there wasn’t a good direction, when it wasn’t clear how thing would break?”

As you prepare for your next interview, consider the advice of these leaders. Focus on how you have achieved success working with others, think about your mistakes and how you corrected them and consider how you respond when there are no clear directions. Having a few examples to illustrate your experiences just might give you the competitive edge in an interview.

Ask for advice. Don’t ask them to make the calls. Ask for contacts. Don’t turn over your networking to mom and dad. This is your career and while your parents can provide perspective, you are the decision maker and you are the one closest to the information.

In the past two years we have heard from employers about parents who actually call to negotiate offers. If you look at our parents survey on this site, you will see a number of parents conduct the job search and negotiation for their student. If this is the process you are considering, why would you hand off the relationship development and management aspect of your job search to a third party? In this economy the employer wants to hear from you, not your agent.

Your four years at college provides an opportunity to explore options that did not exist when your parents went through the process of finding their first job. It is rare to find the parent outside of engineering who had an internship as part of their undergraduate curriculum. Today, internships are not an option and most students have at least one on the resume prior to graduation. You have the first hand experience to make your decision. Your parents can be a great sounding board as you evaluate the pros and cons of your decision.

The media has done a great job this year of frightening all of us into thinking there are no jobs out there. For now, this is a better story than the one about college students receiving offers from internship employers. You feel the pressure and your parents are worrying that you will be moving back home after investing in a four year degree.

Ask their advice and keep them posted on what you are doing. There will be less concern if you talk about what you are doing to explore your options. If you have a plan, it will be clear where you need help and how they can be involved.

Your parents know you the best. They know your strengths as well as your weak points. Involve them in the conversation and then make your decision. Rephrase the question. Instead of ‘mom, what should I do with my life?’; ask mom, I am considering three options, where do you see the best opportunity for me to utilize my strengths and develop as a professional?

Have you had the opportunity to meet the key people in your internship organization? Are you receiving feedback on your performance? Have you acquired some new skills as a result of your work assignments? Do you understand the ‘big picture’ of your organization?

Your answers may vary. However, this would be a good time to set a formal meeting with your supervisor for both feedback on the first weeks and goal setting for the remainder of your internship. What do you still want to do? Who do you want to meet? If the informal daily interactions are not meeting your expectations, develop a formal agenda for the rest of your term.

The mid term exam period is also a good time to check in with your employer on your mid term internship progress.

Schedule time with the people you still want to meet. Ask for 15 minutes on their calendar. Have a list of questions and make the most of your ‘face time’. Your pre-meeting organization and good interview skills might impress and lead to a new opportunity. And don’t forget to take notes.

If you have not already negotiated time off for Thanksgiving and set a date for your last day at work, now is the time. If you have been interning in finance and find the people in marketing more of a ‘fit’ with your personality, set an appointment with the hiring manager for marketing and ask about spring internships. If you have decided a large company is too fragmented, ask your colleagues to recommend some smaller organizations in your field. Not only is this a good time to plan for the rest of the semester, it is also a time to plant some seeds for spring.

The second half of the semester is always ‘academic crunch time’. Take a look at your calendar and plan your time to balance your internship commitments with your academic requirements. If there are conflicts, meet with your internship supervisor to address any issues. Planning ahead and communicating with your employer will further establish your professional reputation.

Check in, plan and communicate. Not only will your current internship be successful, but you will have positioned yourself for your next career move.

Why do an internship? Over that past five years there has been a dramatic change in how employers select college hires. In the past a great GPA, leadership of an organization and participation in a community service project guaranteed a first interview. Today, employers value work experience more than GPA. And, for the student who has decided to explore a career field outside of their major, an internship adds instant credibility to a resume. The answer to ‘why?’ is ‘why not?’

How do you define an internship? Let’s say you have been working at a part time job, is there a difference? Here are a couple of things you should consider. Are you acquiring skills that will apply to your career field? Have you been given responsibility to manage a project? Does your supervisor provide you with developmental feedback? At the end of each work day, do you find you are closer to your career goal through the work you have accomplished or the people you have met? If the answers are all positive, the label doesn’t matter.

What matters is that you take the time to understand your options. Sitting in your room by yourself does not get you closer to this understanding. You may find a lot of information on the internet, but you need the personal connection to evaluate if you can be successful in your field.

Take some time this week to visit the CPPC in the Student Union and attend one or more of the panel discussions. You don’t need to go buy a suit, just come as you are. If you miss one of the panels, go to the podcasts. It is not too late to start planning for your spring internship.