Josh Tolan is the CEO of Spark Hire, which combines a video job board and online interviewing platform to enrich interaction between job seekers and employers. Connect with him and Spark Hire on Facebook and Twitter.
Studying literature at Oxford or finance at the London School of Economics; strolling by the Siene or sunbathing on the Italian Riviera coast — these are all possibilities for the college student studying abroad. And these opportunities will give them experiences that will change their lives and memories that will last a lifetime. But is it worth it to study abroad if it means you'll be missing out on employment opportunities back home?
To put it simply, yes! Many organizations are now using video interviews to hire candidates instead of "old-fashioned" meetings, so take advantage of a remote interview. Teresa Tilles, a recruiter for Fairfax, Virg.-based Balfour Beatty Construction asserts, "Companies recruit at colleges all over the United States for positions everywhere. Students and companies are so computer-savvy and it makes sense, especially if students have to pay their way to an interview or are overseas for a semester but hoping to join the workforce when they return home."
Here are some things to consider when you're interviewing remotely. Would you ever do a remote interview while abroad? Let us know in the comments.
Advantages
As Tilles says, "It is often cheaper to record our interviews rather than fly the candidates in, put them up in hotels, add car rentals and meals. And vice versa, if candidates have to incur the expense to attend an interview/career fair, this is often easier on the wallet."
Another advantage of a video interview is that it makes it possible for both parties (the interviewer and the interviewee) to accommodate their schedules. The company decides what questions to ask the job seekers and puts them in the interview package. And when it's convenient for the applicant, he or she can open up the video interview module, record responses and submit them.
Are They Effective?
While meeting an employer in-person is the most effective way to make a first impression, video interviews are an adequate way to interface because it still promotes face-time. "It truly feels like an on-site interview, you can see the person, see their body language and see their professionalism," says Tilles.
Jennifer Flaa, the CEO of media training company Vettanna ToGo, agrees. She says that although video interviews are a new addition to the hiring process, the fundamentals of interviewing are the same. Poor body language and careless presentation can ruin a video interview as easily as they can derail a face-to-face conversation.
According to Flaa, you need to be yourself because you still want to project an authentic representation of you, a potential employee.
"Being self-conscious is your number one enemy," she explains. "It makes you nervous and it makes you act fake. Think about the questions, think about the other person, or imagine you are talking to a good friend who is nodding and agreeing with everything you say."
Candidates Can Breathe Easy
Even while abroad, jobseekers can have faith they won't be forgotten about. By utilizing key features such as recording answers to screening questions and creating a profile video, candidates can provide interested companies with a concrete and accessible video they can easily share and keep in place for future open positions.
The Wave of the Future?
"We just started a $1 billion project in Utah and interviewed students from George Mason University here in Fairfax a few months ago," says Tilles. "They met with our on-site human resources director and our company president, then we continued the interview via recordings with the vice president in Utah. He hired two students who interviewed this way and they start this summer."
If you're debating giving up the undeniable opportunities you have to enrich your life by studying abroad so that you won't be the last one in your class to be hired, end your internal argument and go. After all, can you think of a better way to job hunt then turning on your laptop while sitting at a café in Paris, eating a croissant in the shadow of the Eiffel Tower?
Social Media Job Listings
Every week we post a list of social media and web job opportunities. While we publish a huge range of job listings, we've selected some of the top social media job opportunities from the past two weeks to get you started. Happy hunting!
- Community & Marketing Manager at Dashlane in New York
- Internet Marketing Intern at Vertex Innovations in Littleton, Colo.
- Social Media Manager at 180la in Los Angeles
Image courtesy of iStockphoto, TommL
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