Suddenly I see, this is what I wanna be.... #1

First off, lemme introduce myself.
I'm a 2nd year in my Higher Education program, preparing for graduation, and launching into my first ever serious job search. And I'm not gonna lie - I'm totally scared.

Back in August one of my assistantship supervisors asked me what I was thinking about doing for my job search - what I wanted to do and where I wanted to go. I went completely deer-in-headlights on her, and she laughed and told me she'd let me get away with that for now. Around November she asked me again. This time I was a little more clear about what I wanted to do, but still wimpered in fear about the whole job search process. Eventually, I broke down and let her edit my resume. Then another supervisor wanted to see it. Finally, in December, I came across a job description that was fantastic. It seemed nearly made for me and all of a sudden I found myself asking for cover letter assistance. The next thing I knew I was perfecting my resume, logging into the website, and filling out my first application. Hitting 'submit' was the scariest thing I'd done all semester. And now here it is, the beginning stages of my last semester, and suddenly I'm truly faced with finding a job or being unemployed with a mountain of student loan debt. *gulp* No pressure or anything.

I didn't think that these decisions would have to be made already. I've spent the last year and a half completely falling in love with student affairs and trying to get as much experience as possible. I've been able to meet so many incredible individuals, both in and out of class, and do amazing things. My classes have been thought provoking, my professors have been endearing. Suddenly, it's time to become an adult. Where did all of my time go?

Despite my fear and reservations, I'm ready to finally "grow up" and do something fantastic with my life. I've been going to school virtually non-stop since kindergarten - I headed to college straight from high school, and then I decided that continuing right on to graduate school was the best choice. I think it's time that I made some decent money and got a Big Girl Job. I need a salary. I need benefits. I need an office.

First, I just have to get through this final semester. Classes, my Assistantship, an Internship, and my Second Job are filling up my plate - not to mention all the time that a job search actually takes. I have already realized that all of this will challenge my organizational skills to the max. I'm already a freak with my day planner, and it's starting to get even worse. My 'to do' lists are filled with the most mundane of tasks, but I fear that if I don't write it down it'll never get done. The anxiety is building, and I've already experienced my first panic attacks of the semester. So far, I've applied for 6 jobs. This number seems ridiculously small, and I'm combing all the good places to find interesting postings that might work for me. The goal is to have an offer that I'm planning on accepting (or have already accepted) by graduation. This leaves me with three and a half months - not very much time. And the next wave of anxiety washes over me....

This brings me to the title of my little blog. While at the Second Job this evening, KT Tunstall's song "Suddenly I See" came up in the playlist. Truth be told, I already love this song and I've been known to sing it loudly (and out of key) when I hear it. With everything on my mind already, including what to title this thing, it hit me that the first line of the chorus would work beautifully. Despite all the anxiety and the nervousness, the suffering and the worrying, this really IS what I want to be. Can I imagine myself in a life that doesn't involve student affairs? No. This means I have to be on the right track.

And you know, if all else fails, there's still Second Job to fall back on. This is one of the reasons I haven't quit yet. But it's all about positive thinking. It won't matter, because I'll get a job. I don't need a fall back plan, right?

Of course I'll get a job.
.....right?

The Great Fishbowl Quest* #1

Really? Already?

What better day to start a blog than the day you hold your first interview?

Before getting into that, though, I’ve been asked to tell you a little bit about myself. This should be a breeze considering that this is the first interview question all of us who are job searching will be asked a countless number of times. The tricky part is answering without a name, an institution, or other identifying labels (mysterious, isn’t it?).

Currently, I am completing my last semester of graduate school studying “Student Affairs” while serving as a “Hall Director” at my institution. The coursework is quite intimidating this semester, and I believe the instructors are looking to make our comprehensive exams a “grand finale” which will leave us with spots in front of our eyes. In addition to graduating, I also hope to be granted a job (that I choose) at an institution in a community that my wife and I will enjoy. That’s right; I’m married, too, which is fantastic for me, because I have a support network 24/7 (although I don’t know how great it is for her, having to be my support network 24/7).

With that said, I’d like to jump right into my experiences up to now. Last week I was contacted by an institution to set up a phone interview. I was very excited to have the opportunity, as this school rates high on my list (Once my list is complete, I will have a ranking I may refer to throughout the blog). We’ll call this school Top Ten Institution. Being excited about the opportunity, though, is not the same as “looking forward” to it.

I have never had a phone interview. I’d like to emphasize that word “never.” I’ll even add “ever” to it. Never ever. Had this not been Top Ten Institution, I wouldn’t be so nervous. I’d much prefer to hold my first phone interview with Far Unlikely Institution.

I combined some survival tactics and did the following: I waited two days to respond and used that time to give myself a crash-course in practicing interview questions and learning everything I could about phone interviews. When I replied, it was that time in the week that the odds were in my favor that we would interview the following week. All went just according to plan.

We had scheduled for this morning. I dressed the part (tie and all) and waited for the phone to ring in my silent apartment. I used my cell phone to call my apartment and make sure the phone was working. I had my friend call so I could find out if the volume was alright. I ended up hiding my cell phone so that I would stop looking at the time. And then I jumped a mile high when the phone rang.

It rang once (Don’t answer; you’ll come off too eager). It rang twice (Hurry and answer the phone before it rings a third time!).

I’d love to say it went perfectly, that I anticipated every question. Not quite.

I made the mistake of anticipating the “tell us a little bit about yourself” question. It’s the question to test the waters; your chance to figure out if this is a formal or informal interview. And with a phone interview, you need any clues you can get when you don’t have any nonverbals for hints.

Here’s how the first fifteen seconds of the phone interview went:

“Good morning, Candidate speaking.”

“Good morning, Candidate. I’m #1. This is #2. Let’s get started. Why Top Ten Institution?”

I wanted to ask for a chance to pick myself up off the ground, but I thought that might make a bad first impression.

After that, though, things quickly took a positive turn. Once those first five minutes were over, the interview went perfectly. I feel very confident that Top Ten Institution will ask me to interview with them again at one of the exchanges.

One down, two to go (with that institution). Only about forty other institutions left.

* I’ve titled my portion of this blog The Great Fishbowl Quest as I currently work in a “fishbowl” and am on a quest to find a new and exciting “fishbowl” to join.