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THE ASSESSMENT CENTER

Whatever you do, do not underestimate the Assessment Center.

It is by far one of the most nerve wracking experiences: you are basically put in a room full of people just like you, with your same strengths and knowledge. Some are smarter, some are less knowledgeable. And all of you have a great chance to go through.

But there is only one spot.

You need to compete with each other during different kind of tests.

THE STRUCTURE

Usually my assessment centers were built the following way:

• case study
• group exercise
• final interview(s)

CASE STUDY

During the Case Study, you have one hour to read through a bunch of papers with loads of data on a fictional company. You then need to pin point what is the biggest issues of that company, and come up with tangible solutions, based on the data you have read.

Then you need to start writing your presentation and then you need to present to a board of 2 to 5 members of the company, who have all read through the same case study… and impress them.

This was by far my biggest weak point until a year ago when it became my strongest feature. This goes to show that working on your weak points is actually a game changer.

HOW TO GET BETTER

I went from crap to glorious by experience, but also by following the few steps below:

• identify the 3 main pain points of the fictional company
• find a solution using the main strengths of the company
• find data in the info you have.Calculate and create more data to back up your solutions: the more they see you played with the data you were given the more they see that you are using it
• use your own creative mind to find alternative solutions that are maybe not that obvious or present in the case. Show that you can think outside of the box
• when reading the case study, do not read it cover to cover extremely attentively. Try your best to skim through it while not losing comprehension. It is ok if not all the information is going in. You will probably just need 20% of it anyway.

PRESENTATION TIPS

Before moving on to the group exercise, I would like to give you a few tips when it comes to presentations:

• if you are asked to write on big pieces of paper for your presentation, do not prepare them last minute. Always leave 20minutes for it during the case study prep as it takes more time than you can imagine.
• only write bullet points and the main elements of your answers
• do not do a lot of slides: on average 5 is ok (for marketing and sales case studies).
• when you present, smile, focus and move around the room like you own the place. You will come across as more powerful and in control, even when you are at loss of words.
• before you start the presentation, know what are the 3 main messages you aim to convey
• if the people judging you go hard on you, it is a test to see how well you react to friction. Imagine this was your actual job and that you didn’t try to convince them. Imagine you were the boss and these little people just needed reassurance.

GROUP EXERCISE

What usually happens is that you are put into a team and you need to solve a problem. You can also be in a team debating with another team about a particular issue. This exercise depends a lot on the kind of role you are going for but here are a few obvious rules:

• do not try and “lead” by dictating, you will look like an idiot
• rather than the above, listen a lot and only talk to contribute with some valuable information.
• if no one mentions the time ticking, mention it half way through
• if arguments are going all over the place, propose a strategy in order to come to a conclusion. For instance, what I say is “since there seems to be many opinions, I propose that we go round the table and vote, giving our main argument in a fairly quick way since we need to finish soon”.
• give recognition to a team member that contributed well by acknowledging how good his or her idea was
• do not interrupt

If you are going for a sales role, show resilience and persistence for the outcome you are looking for. Not in an aggressive way but do argument.

INTERVIEW

Finally you have the interview. This time with slightly bigger bosses.

Since I already went through my main tips in my Interview post, I will not expand on this. I would only add that it is incredibly important to notice that if people are going at you aggressively or teasing you, it is only a test to see if you got what it takes to overcome the pressure that will come in the job. Therefore please don’t take anything personally and bare in mind to react in a politically correct way at all times.

If a comment of theirs throws you off, try your best to answer with a question. For instance, if one of the interviewers says a statement about you that is clearly getting to you, simply respond with “what makes you say that?”.

Always remember, the power is in the hands of who asks the questions.

On this note, good luck for everything and do not hesitate to contact me if you ever need some more tips!

HOW CAN WE CAN HELP EACH OTHER (ONLINE OPPORTUNITY)

If you are struggling to find experience and are interested in Copywriting, Marketing or Entrepreneurship then we are looking for people to become editors of this website. I will form you and teach you everything I know. If you want to get involved with this blog then please do not hesitate to contact me via this Contact Form or via my Instagram account. This is a unique opportunity. Again, you can contact me for more details on how this may help you!

ADDITIONAL RESOURCES FOR YOU

Over the years I have created many guides and checklist that aim to help you save time. Here are a list of them just in case you might miss out on a few:

1. My 1st E-Book: a resource that has help me become a boss at Time Management. Moreover, it has also helped me create more time for what I love and get to my goals faster. It is lengthy, however it is arguably the best Time Management piece of research out there.
2. The Time Management Actionable Sheets: a summary of my E-Book. These sheets have conserved the absolute essential actions you need to take to make the most out of your time. Do not skip any steps!
3. My Before & After CV Transformation: a resource that has collected my CVs for the past 7 years to help you not only craft a great CV, but to also show you that everyone can start mediocre and grow exponentially.
4. How To Land a Job Faster Guide: a resource that aims to give you all of the tips and recommendations I have used during my career. This will help you avoid some common mistakes students do when starting off with their job applications.

MY OBJECTIVE IS AND WILL FOREVER BE TO HELP YOU

To conclude, the aim of this website is to help you have the best fresh start at University and with your career. There is nothing that gives me more happiness and joy but to hear your positive feedback on how helpful my content has been. Contact me if you have any feedback for me!

BEST OF LUCK WITH IT ALL!!!!

Much affection,

Francesca Michaud

INTERVIEWS

Interviews are by far my favorite part of the Application process.

There is such a misconception around them: everyone who feels interviewed are scared of being judged. Consequently, they often do not react or talk the way they would usually do.

People often forget that the interview is a two way thing: you need to understand if the management and company is right for you just as much as the management needs to understand if you will be a good fit.

TYPES OF INTERVIEWS

With that says, let’s distinguish to types of interviews:

• phone interview
• the face to face interview (including Skype ones)

PHONE

The phone interview is my least favorite. I am incapable of reading the other person as I cannot see the way their face is reacting to what I am saying. I need to focus a lot on the tone of voice to see the variations of it when they respond to certain things I say.

However a lot of people prefer the phone interview because it takes away the pressure of being seen and it allows people to have notes of paper in front of them that they can read.

This is a huge advantage however please beware of your voice when you read out your responses. Some people become monotone when reading or express themselves to fluently, too perfectly, without a human hesitation. So make sure to vary the tone of voice when you read and also stop sometimes to fake “searching your words” so that it comes across more natural and human.

Most importantly: smile. It makes a difference!

NOTES

But the real question is: what should you put in your notes?

Start with the absolute basic questions and answers:

• tell me about yourself
• why did you choose this role
• why did you choose this company
• what is your biggest strength
• what is your biggest weakness

That same preparation needs to be done for face to face interviews but this time you won’t be able to cheat therefore you need to practice your responses over and over until they start getting more natural when you say them.

Although face to face interviews can be daunting, they have a tremendous impact compared to phone calls. The recruiter can see your face and the enthusiasm you convey. You can come across like a breath of fresh air and communicate so much more energy and passion through your facial expressions rather than just the voice.

I cannot recommend enough trusting the fact that you are worthy of this job and that you should totally relax. The employer will understand if you are nervous but they definitely prefer the confident candidates. This doesn’t mean arrogant.

If you are afraid of not being able to put a sentence together, please rehearse the most common questions. Especially the ones I listed before. If you need more, you can download My Answers To Top Interview Questions (coming soon).

PREPARATION

What I also do is go through their main requirements and characteristics they are looking for. Check out this blog post if you haven’t already. I write a story about how I have experienced that characteristic and clearly am a good fit.

For instance, if the job description keeps repeating “leadership” a lot, or “team work”, I would try and think of what kind of issues or experience a leader would encounter and then have a story about those issues. This way, when the recruiter asks me the following questions, I will have a story clearly indicating that I know what being a leader entails:

• Tell me about a time someone in your team was not contributing. How did you solve that problem?
• Tell me about a time where your contribution in a team was valuable to the team.
• Tell me about a time where you had an issue with a person in your team.

Think about the good and ugly scenarios of your professional life and then turn it so that it looks like you know how to adapt to any sticky situation.

FINAL QUESTIONS

Finally, about 80% of people are clueless of how important the question section is. When the interview comes to an end, a lot of students do not ask questions when they are given the opportunity to ask them.

Asking the interviewers questions is a golden opportunity to take back a bit of power and understand more about the company.

Do not waste your questions on answers you already know. Ask them questions, from human to human. Ask them about their experiences the same way they asked you. Put them on the spot.

It makes a hell of a difference.

If you are successful, you either have the job, or have to go through one more step: the Assessment center.

HOW CAN WE CAN HELP EACH OTHER (ONLINE OPPORTUNITY)

If you are struggling to find experience and are interested in Copywriting, Marketing or Entrepreneurship then we are looking for people to become editors of this website. I will form you and teach you everything I know. If you want to get involved with this blog then please do not hesitate to contact me via this Contact Form or via my Instagram account. This is a unique opportunity. Again, you can contact me for more details on how this may help you!

ADDITIONAL RESOURCES FOR YOU

Over the years I have created many guides and checklist that aim to help you save time. Here are a list of them just in case you might miss out on a few:

1. My 1st E-Book: a resource that has help me become a boss at Time Management. Moreover, it has also helped me create more time for what I love and get to my goals faster. It is lengthy, however it is arguably the best Time Management piece of research out there.
2. The Time Management Actionable Sheets: a summary of my E-Book. These sheets have conserved the absolute essential actions you need to take to make the most out of your time. Do not skip any steps!
3. My Before & After CV Transformation: a resource that has collected my CVs for the past 7 years to help you not only craft a great CV, but to also show you that everyone can start mediocre and grow exponentially.
4. How To Land a Job Faster Guide: a resource that aims to give you all of the tips and recommendations I have used during my career. This will help you avoid some common mistakes students do when starting off with their job applications.

MY OBJECTIVE IS AND WILL FOREVER BE TO HELP YOU

To conclude, the aim of this website is to help you have the best fresh start at University and with your career. There is nothing that gives me more happiness and joy but to hear your positive feedback on how helpful my content has been. Contact me if you have any feedback for me!

BEST OF LUCK WITH IT ALL!!!!

Much affection,

Francesca Michaud

ONLINE TESTS & GAMES

If you past the initial screening, aka, if your CV and Cover Letter were successful, you are either directed to an Interview directly, or you are asked to perform online tests (like for Procter & Gamble, for example) or games (like for Unilever).

Online tests vary depending on the role you have applied for.

TYPES OF TEST

There are different types of online tests (that I know about):

• numerical test
• behavioral test
• reasoning test
• logical test

NUMERICAL TEST

The numerical test usually assesses how fast your calculations are and how good your analytical skills are are. It is very popular for financial roles. You usually are racing against time in order to solve 30 to 60 problems which involve charts, diagrams, tables of data and graphs.

It’s meant to calculate how quickly you can filter the elements you need to resolve the question and how effectively you can calculate the answer.

Usually, numerical tests are presented as multiple questions. Moreover, they often require you to tick only one correct answer. Therefore, if you are running out of time, just make sure you give an answer to every question! This said, don’t bank on this method to save you: there are usually 5 answers. This only gives you a 20% chance to get the correct answer every time.

How To Practice

In order to prepare for this kind of test, you need to find as many past papers as possible online. Try a couple every day, for 3 consecutive days before you take the real test and one on the same day. This will help your brain get sharp and ready for whatever is coming.

Please remember that some of the tests you will find online can be either too easy or too hard. Do not freak out if you are being slow or if you are only able to do half of the past papers in the given time. Sometimes, it is made on purpose.

My biggest tip for this test is to never mentally give up during the test. Even you didn’t manage to find the answer for 10 consecutive answers, you need to attack every question with the same energy. That is the main difference between those who pass and those who don’t. Often, very capable individuals do not pass only because they had a lack of faith and gave up. It happened more than once that people with half of their knowledge and speed passed instead of them simply because they did not stop fighting until the very end.

So do not give up. I want to hear you roar at the end of it like you did your best!

BEHAVIOURAL TEST

The behavioural test usually assesses how you think and how you describe yourself. In my experience, you are given a series of statements, around 50 of them) and you get to put on a scale from Very Unlikely to Very Likely  how much you relate to the statement.

For example:

When in a social setting, I usually tend to introduce myself:

Very Unlikely   Unlikely    Neutral   Likely   Very Likely

You are basically measuring how true the statement is for you and how you perceive yourself.

For this one there isn’t really a right or wring answer like in the numerical test. You are the way you are however try and understand what kind of person they are looking for beforehand. However, you need to stay as truthful as yourself as possible: they will test it through contradictions. 

How To Practice

In order to prepare for this kind of test, I would go on the company’s website and look at the core values and beliefs of the organization. Secondly, I would stalk a few of the people who work for the company on LinkedIn  to get an idea of what kind of personality is preferred.

My biggest tip for this test is to contact a few current employees and ask them what are the 3 main characteristics of a great employee.

REASONING TEST

The reasoning test usually assesses how you would react in certain situations.

It is not necessarily limited in time but it gives you a scenario and a few options on how you would act in that situation.

For instance:

Kevin is being bullied at work by Sara. Would you rather:

1. Ignore the conflict
2. Tell Kevin to leave with you
3. Go up to Sara and kick her in the balls
4. Tell Sara that her behavior is inappropriate

These are my favorites as I always seem to score high in these.

For these kind of tests there isn’t really something to help you train. It should be your innate impulsive reaction to act the correct way in a company. Just do what is right, and look online at a few scenarios in order to understand the reasoning if you ever need clarifications.

LOGICAL TEST

The logical test usually assesses your reaction time to threads of shapes and logical games.

These are tests that vary enormously between each other. The ones I have always been used to were the shapes in a line that were following a logic and you had to pick the next one out of 5 options of shapes.

But I recently had a logical test with P&G… it was the hardest. You looked at dots on the screen, and needed to memorize their position. Then, you were distracted by being shown two shapes: you needed to figure out within 2 seconds if the two shapes were mirrored or different. Straight after that, I was back with the spots and needed to place them where the computer showed them in the first frame…. It is hard to explain, very messy.

How To Practice

I strongly recommend you look online for logical tests with figures and try them out. The weird thing about these tests is that you will never know how well you scored on them. You just do it and hope for the best.

GAMES

Unilever usually asks you to download an app. You are then asked to play a series of 10 games more or less. Each game is around 2 minutes long and you have absolutely no time to strategize or think during them. It is made on purpose to calculate with your reasoning, decisions and speed… and personality, weirdly.

Unilever gives you a PDF document where you can read your top skills and your worst skills. Also it tells you more about your characteristics. All that thanks to 10 little games. It is crazy the amount of data these companies have on each individual!

How To Practice

For these kind of tests, good luck. There little to nothing you can do to practice. They are literally scanning you to see if yay or nay, naturally, you belong to the company or not. So just do what feels right and do not care too much about the outcome. It is better that they figure out now what kind of person you are because, even if you managed to fake it, you will be unhappy if you get the job and have to pretend to have different impulses than the rest of them.

Once the tests have been completed, it is time to face a few of your bosses during interviews. And these are by far the best minutes of my application process!

HOW CAN WE CAN HELP EACH OTHER (ONLINE OPPORTUNITY)

If you are struggling to find experience and are interested in Copywriting, Marketing or Entrepreneurship then we are looking for people to become editors of this website. I will form you and teach you everything I know. If you want to get involved with this blog then please do not hesitate to contact me via this Contact Form or via my Instagram account. This is a unique opportunity. Again, you can contact me for more details on how this may help you!

ADDITIONAL RESOURCES FOR YOU

Over the years I have created many guides and checklist that aim to help you save time. Here are a list of them just in case you might miss out on a few:

1. My 1st E-Book: a resource that has help me become a boss at Time Management. Moreover, it has also helped me create more time for what I love and get to my goals faster. It is lengthy, however it is arguably the best Time Management piece of research out there.
2. The Time Management Actionable Sheets: a summary of my E-Book. These sheets have conserved the absolute essential actions you need to take to make the most out of your time. Do not skip any steps!
3. My Before & After CV Transformation: a resource that has collected my CVs for the past 7 years to help you not only craft a great CV, but to also show you that everyone can start mediocre and grow exponentially.
4. How To Land a Job Faster Guide: a resource that aims to give you all of the tips and recommendations I have used during my career. This will help you avoid some common mistakes students do when starting off with their job applications.

MY OBJECTIVE IS AND WILL FOREVER BE TO HELP YOU

To conclude, the aim of this website is to help you have the best fresh start at University and with your career. There is nothing that gives me more happiness and joy but to hear your positive feedback on how helpful my content has been. Contact me if you have any feedback for me!

BEST OF LUCK WITH IT ALL!!!!

Much affection,

Francesca Michaud

THE COVER LETTER

Just like with the CV, it is most probably a robot that is looking through your Cover Letter.

Most companies and recruiters use robots and algorithms to go through the main keywords of your text to find a match between their requirements and your experience.

HACK THE SYSTEM

The job description always has keywords and phrases that correspond to the type of person they are looking for. Therefore, most of the requirements are hinted in the job description. Every time you see a keyword or a skill, mark it so that you use it in your Cover Letter. Make sure you use their synonyms as well. Unfortunately, not all the requirements will be hinted in the job description as some of that information is  internal. Therefore you need to make the most with what you are given.

If it is a human reviewing it, then they will probably have a list of requirements too, and will have the same behavior as the robots. However it is a bit more easy to convince a human by showing energy and passion through the choice of words and sentences. Therefore do not forget to sound eloquent as well!

SOFT SKILLS > HARD SKILLS

Most multinationals are now looking for soft skills rather than hard skills. They believe that anyone, with the right training, can learn how to do a certain thing. However, it is the behaviour and the mindset of that employee that is going to determine how well they perform. Are you coachable? Do you welcome feedback easily, even if it’s constructive criticism? Behavior and mindset is harder to teach. Companies would rather attract people who already have the right mindset and values. This will help them make your transition into the company smoother.

MY STEP-BY-STEP APPROACH

1. Make a list of the keywords & phrases present in the Job Description and representing the requirements
2. Pick out from your list of achievements, experiences and success stories that match the skills and requirements needed for the job.
3. Think about the structure of your cover letter, think storytelling. Do not list achievements. Figure out what are the 2 or 3 main behavioral requirements and match them with 2 or 3 experiences proving that you are what they are looking for.
4. Write the first draft
5. Aim to shorten it and make is as poignant as possible. You can do that by always ending the paragraphs with a result that you achieved. The more data and percentages you can add the better. The cover letter should not exceed one page. I aim for half a page.
6. Add in as many keywords and phrases you can. Do not worry if not all of them make the cut. Try at least half.
7. Take a break. You want to review your cover letter with fresh eyes. Ideally the morning after.
8. Refine.

This methodology has helped countless of the students I have been working with one-to-one. I hope it helps you and feel free to contact me if you have any further question.

HOW CAN WE CAN HELP EACH OTHER (ONLINE OPPORTUNITY)

If you are struggling to find experience and are interested in Copywriting, Marketing or Entrepreneurship then we are looking for people to become editors of this website. I will form you and teach you everything I know. If you want to get involved with this blog then please do not hesitate to contact me via this Contact Form or via my Instagram account. This is a unique opportunity. Again, you can contact me for more details on how this may help you!

ADDITIONAL RESOURCES FOR YOU

Over the years I have created many guides and checklist that aim to help you save time. Here are a list of them just in case you might miss out on a few:

1. My 1st E-Book: a resource that has help me become a boss at Time Management. Moreover, it has also helped me create more time for what I love and get to my goals faster. It is lengthy, however it is arguably the best Time Management piece of research out there.
2. The Time Management Actionable Sheets: a summary of my E-Book. These sheets have conserved the absolute essential actions you need to take to make the most out of your time. Do not skip any steps!
3. My Before & After CV Transformation: a resource that has collected my CVs for the past 7 years to help you not only craft a great CV, but to also show you that everyone can start mediocre and grow exponentially.
4. How To Land a Job Faster Guide: a resource that aims to give you all of the tips and recommendations I have used during my career. This will help you avoid some common mistakes students do when starting off with their job applications.

MY OBJECTIVE IS AND WILL FOREVER BE TO HELP YOU

To conclude, the aim of this website is to help you have the best fresh start at University and with your career. There is nothing that gives me more happiness and joy but to hear your positive feedback on how helpful my content has been. Contact me if you have any feedback for me!

BEST OF LUCK WITH IT ALL!!!!

Much affection,

Francesca Michaud

THE CV

Most people write their CV once and then send it to everyone.

As mentioned in the previous blog post, if you do not take the time to tailor your application, it will show and you will considerably lower your chances. You can find my own CVs over the past 7 years here.

THE MEGA CV

Firstly, I usually do is that I write a Mega CV. It’s a CV that contains all of my experiences and my extra curricular activities. I allow myself to write everything on huge document.

Then, I pick the experiences that best suit the company that I am applying for. I show off the skills and experiences that are the most demanded in the job description.

SECTIONS IN MY THE CV

It needs to be to the point and easy to read. I include the sections below:

• Education: nothing before university is that important. If you have attended a summer school for your languages or something similar, do include it.
• Certifications & Awards: if you don’t have any, get some. Nowadays on the internet it is so easy to study for some free certificates, no need to spend money. For instance, my university had an award scheme. This is an activity that universities propose to help students with their employability. Indeed, the more employable you are, the more attractive the university. 
• Languages: I have a dedicated section for this because I have many languages under my belt. You can switch that with whatever other main skill you may have. For instance, you may have very technical knowledge of photoshop, in design and after effects. Therefore, instead of Languages, you’d put Adobe proficiency.
• Experiences: I put all of my work related experiences (aka paid jobs). If you do not have too many roles, do include volunteering experiences. 
• Extra-curricular: if the company seems to welcome diversity and well-rounded personalities, I would include sports such as being a choreographer for the Dance Society. If the company is very competitive to get into, and is more business-y, I would switch that with more professional extra-curricular activities such as “building online brands and reaching 40K+ people”.

RESULTS DRIVEN & CONCISE

In your experience section, it is vital to stick to the impact you have had in the company. Highlight any tangible results you worked for. Including data, percentage of growth and even big names in your company (titles) will help you stick out from the crowd.

The experience section is obviously the most important one. The title of the company needs to be there and extravagant. The bigger the company the better. However the advantage of working with smaller companies is that you can have a much higher impact than if in a huge multinational. Have maximum 3 bullet points explaining your role and results. I usually explain my role in 2 bullet points and then the last one I punch the reader in the face by putting cool stats and impact I have made in my role. Any increase of sales or user retention on a website, engagement growth… 

Next we have the Cover Letter.

HOW CAN WE CAN HELP EACH OTHER (ONLINE OPPORTUNITY)

If you are struggling to find experience and are interested in Copywriting, Marketing or Entrepreneurship then we are looking for people to become editors of this website. I will form you and teach you everything I know. If you want to get involved with this blog then please do not hesitate to contact me via this Contact Form or via my Instagram account. This is a unique opportunity. Again, you can contact me for more details on how this may help you!

ADDITIONAL RESOURCES FOR YOU

Over the years I have created many guides and checklist that aim to help you save time. Here are a list of them just in case you might miss out on a few:

1. My 1st E-Book: a resource that has help me become a boss at Time Management. Moreover, it has also helped me create more time for what I love and get to my goals faster. It is lengthy, however it is arguably the best Time Management piece of research out there.
2. The Time Management Actionable Sheets: a summary of my E-Book. These sheets have conserved the absolute essential actions you need to take to make the most out of your time. Do not skip any steps!
3. My Before & After CV Transformation: a resource that has collected my CVs for the past 7 years to help you not only craft a great CV, but to also show you that everyone can start mediocre and grow exponentially.
4. How To Land a Job Faster Guide: a resource that aims to give you all of the tips and recommendations I have used during my career. This will help you avoid some common mistakes students do when starting off with their job applications.

MY OBJECTIVE IS AND WILL FOREVER BE TO HELP YOU

To conclude, the aim of this website is to help you have the best fresh start at University and with your career. There is nothing that gives me more happiness and joy but to hear your positive feedback on how helpful my content has been. Contact me if you have any feedback for me!

BEST OF LUCK WITH IT ALL!!!!

Much affection,

Francesca Michaud

BEFORE YOU START

No matter how long and soul-breaking it is to be constantly rejected, your application is an investment. You get what you put in. Not all the time, but most of the time.

Recently I spent 5h writing and tailoring my CV and cover letter for a job that I knew I really wanted. It was 6pm when I got back from one of the darkest and most exhausting days at work. My moral was down and my energy was low.

But somehow, that motivated me. Why was I accepting this situation? I needed to get out of this hideous and inhumane “job” I am currently in.

Find your motivation and spend time on this process.

WHAT YOU NEED

YOUR LIST OF ACHIEVEMENTS

Firstly, write down every successful thing you achieved. You need a list of achievements. For instance, put in all of the certificates, degrees, experiences and success stories you have collected during your life.

Maybe you managed to raise money for a charity, exceeding the target by 20%. That is a success story. Maybe you have done an online certificate for finance. Mark that one down too. You graduated from university with top marks. Or maybe you helped a student that was not involved in his group work, to actually participate and work harder than anyone in the group! Make a list, be kind to yourself and write everything that pops into your mind. Even if you might find it insignificant, write it down, as it can be an element of a success story.

For instance, when I wrote my list, I was hesitating in putting down the fact that the director of my department in adidas publicly congratulated me in a meeting which included the whole Western Europe team. Although it doesn’t seem much, like, big deal he said “bravo”, I turned it around and added it to another success story and that helped me to make my success story more punchy.

THE JOB DESCRIPTION

Next, you need the job description of the role you are thinking of applying too. Make a list of the keywords and phrases representing the requirements.

Try your best to figure out what exactly is wanted from you. What are the behaviors the company praises? What experience are they looking for? Use all of the keywords and implied skills that you find. This will be a great guide for when you write your Cover Letter and CV.

THEIR CULTURE

Finally, go on the website of the company and read through their core values and beliefs. Every multinational has them. I am pretty sure that smaller companies have a credo as well. Understand what kind of community each of the company you are applying to attracts.

This can also help you figure out if this crowd is for you. When I use to apply, I did not see the application process as me choosing them, more like them choosing me. I couldn’t be more wrong. If you feel a disconnection with what they are saying and your beliefs, then do not be surprised if you get rejected. Most of the employers can sense if you are w right fit for the company. If you are not, they will probably notice. Therefore do not waste your time.

Once you have these three elements you can proceed to the CV section.

HOW CAN WE CAN HELP EACH OTHER (ONLINE OPPORTUNITY)

If you are struggling to find experience and are interested in Copywriting, Marketing or Entrepreneurship then we are looking for people to become editors of this website. I will form you and teach you everything I know. If you want to get involved with this blog then please do not hesitate to contact me via this Contact Form or via my Instagram account. This is a unique opportunity. Again, you can contact me for more details on how this may help you!

ADDITIONAL RESOURCES FOR YOU

Over the years I have created many guides and checklist that aim to help you save time. Here are a list of them just in case you might miss out on a few:

1. My 1st E-Book: a resource that has help me become a boss at Time Management. Moreover, it has also helped me create more time for what I love and get to my goals faster. It is lengthy, however it is arguably the best Time Management piece of research out there.
2. The Time Management Actionable Sheets: a summary of my E-Book. These sheets have conserved the absolute essential actions you need to take to make the most out of your time. Do not skip any steps!
3. My Before & After CV Transformation: a resource that has collected my CVs for the past 7 years to help you not only craft a great CV, but to also show you that everyone can start mediocre and grow exponentially.
4. How To Land a Job Faster Guide: a resource that aims to give you all of the tips and recommendations I have used during my career. This will help you avoid some common mistakes students do when starting off with their job applications.

MY OBJECTIVE IS AND WILL FOREVER BE TO HELP YOU

To conclude, the aim of this website is to help you have the best fresh start at University and with your career. There is nothing that gives me more happiness and joy but to hear your positive feedback on how helpful my content has been. Contact me if you have any feedback for me!

BEST OF LUCK WITH IT ALL!!!!

Much affection,

Francesca Michaud

THE APPLICATION PROCESS

Welcome to the beginning of a new era: the ACTUAL adulting. You will love it.

This is the part that most of us neglect and underestimate. You have spent your whole life sweating and stressing for good grades. And now it is time to actually see who wants to employ you. We have been fed a fable. Our whole lives we have been told that getting a degree and good grades will open doors for us.

WRONG.

Absolute. Utter. BS.

Firstly, you are the one that will open doors for yourself, independently of your great essay. No one cares about your grades, probably because there are another 10,000 of you saying the same thing. Moreover, I personally believe that we are fed this fat lie to kickstart the process of creative extinction. But that’s just me. Nevertheless, it is now time for you to face all of those cold, plain and hard rejection letters.

YOU ARE NOT ENTITLED

Yes, you will spend hours crafting that perfect CV.

You will spend days thinking about how you can make your cover letter sound poignant and original.

You will sweat and stutter during those phone interviews (if you are lucky enough to be invited to one).

Yes, you will waste months going through the 534 application steps you must go through to have a chance to receive a contract. You will probably not go through the last stage.

And yes, you will still be rejected. No matter how hard you try.

You will have fat NOs thrown at your face without any explanation nor feedback.

You will see your hopes vanish with that short copy-pasted email starting with the word “Unfortunately”.

Finally, you will start doubting your worth and comparing yourself to the 3 people who actually got a “great” job opportunity (lies). Oh, you will also compare yourself to the 10 people who got a job thanks to that lucky contact in their father’s booklet.

DON’T TAKE IT PERSONALLY

Does that mean you need to despair and stop trying? Does that mean that you are condemned to have that life, the one you have always dreaded? The kind of desk job that crushes your energy and kills your dreams? The kind of role where you are treated like a number and constantly stressed out? The uninspiring same old routine that you turn up to in exchange of that salary that pays off the rent and the transportation to that same job?

Nah.

Sure you need experience, and sure you can allow yourself to suffer a year or two if that’s what you think is good for you. But DO NOT, for a single millisecond, believe that you are worth that dream job. You know why? 

Because chances are you got rejected by a robot. That’s right: your application doesn’t always get reviewed by an actual human. There are parameters that give algorithms, and these algorithms decide if you are shown to the employer or not.

PERSIST

There are so many opportunities and cool roles in this world. Some who pay more, some who pay less, some in an expensive city, some on a cheap beach somewhere on an island. You just need to keep that energy up. You need enough energy to look around, to open your eyes. Trust that life has many secret passages that are open to those who want to see them.

Now, after this important introduction that I wish you would read daily, let’s be practical.

STRUCTURING THE APPLICATION PROCESS

To apply for a job in the UK or in Ireland, you need to go through these steps:

1. the screening stage: this is where a robot or a team of HR staff reads your CV and Cover Letter. Do your experiences tick the boxes for the role you are applying to? They better. This is, for most of us, the hardest part as it is not a fair process and you need quite some luck to be actually noticed
2. the online tests: this can be devastating for many. It’s a methodology that many companies use to box you and cut down the amount of people who get through to the next step. Some tests can be practiced (analytical tests or logical tests). Others can’t be trained for (behavioral tests or the games)
3. the phone interview: there are known tricks that can really make a difference in your interview. I explain them in detail in my dedicated blog post
4. the assessment center: a very stressful event where you are invited to compete with other students just like you through a variety of challenges. Some challenges include group work or presentations and the case studies. Others are more subtle such as the networking dinners, drinks and lunches. The assessment centers aims to really get to know you on a personal level. 
5. the final interview(s): they can go hard on you and challenge you with some weird comment to test your reactions, ego and pride.

Now it’s time to teach you every thing I know on each category.

Click away and dive into my head.

HOW CAN WE CAN HELP EACH OTHER (ONLINE OPPORTUNITY)

I have done my best to keep this website up-to-date. However, not living in Exeter anymore, this can be a challenge. If you are about to move to Exeter and want to get involved with this blog then please do not hesitate to contact me via this Contact Form or via my Instagram account. This is a unique opportunity for anyone who would like to get into blogging, influencer marketing or just generally gain some experience for their CV. Again, you can contact me for more details on how this may help you!

ADDITIONAL RESOURCES FOR YOU

Over the years I have created many guides and checklist that aim to help you save time. Here are a list of them just in case you might miss out on a few:

1. The Essay Decoder: a resource to help international students understand what is asked in an essay. This resource was given to me by one of Exeter’s top Senior Lecturers.
2. Do’s & Don’ts at University Guide: a resource that gives you 70+ tips about university life. These recommendations range from social life, to love life, to reputation… I wish I had this guide when starting.
3. The Ultimate Packing Checklist for both Catered students and Self-Catered students. A resource that aims to help you save time when preparing yourself for University.
4. My 1st E-Book: a resource that has help me become a boss at Time Management. Moreover, it has also helped me create more time for what I love and get to my goals faster. It is lengthy, however it is arguably the best Time Management piece of research out there.
5. The Time Management Actionable Sheets: a summary of my E-Book. These sheets have conserved the absolute essential actions you need to take to make the most out of your time. Do not skip any steps!
6. My Before & After CV Transformation: a resource that has collected my CVs for the past 7 years to help you not only craft a great CV, but to also show you that everyone can start mediocre and grow exponentially.
7. How To Land a Job Faster Guide: a resource that aims to give you all of the tips and recommendations I have used during my career. This will help you avoid some common mistakes students do when starting off with their job applications.

MY OBJECTIVE IS AND WILL FOREVER BE TO HELP YOU

To conclude, the aim of this website is to help you have the best fresh start at University and with your career. There is nothing that gives me more happiness and joy but to hear your positive feedback on how helpful my content has been. Contact me if you have any feedback for me!

BEST OF LUCK WITH IT ALL!!!!

Much affection,

Francesca Michaud