MBA Careers Q&A: MIT Sloan

If ever there were evidence of alumni helping current MBAs in their job search, MIT Sloan estimates that “more than 30,000 active companies have been founded by MIT alumni” who, in turn, “come to campus on a continual basis to recruit talent to fuel their growth,” says Sue Kline, co-senior director of the school’s Career Development Office.

In this interview, Kline explains that both alumni and the business world at large “are attracted to our students because they offer a unique combination of the skills needed to analyze the most complex problems along with the inter-personal and management skills needed to propose and implement solutions.”

Might your MBA career path include working for one of MIT Sloan’s alumni? Find out more about how the school’s careers center works with its students in the below:

Does the MIT Sloan career services team work with the MBA admissions team during applicant assessment?

Yes, the MIT Sloan Career Development Office provides insights into the career process as well as participating as an interviewer.  

When do on-campus corporate recruitment events and interviews typically take place at Sloan?

Fall (autumn) is the peak season for corporate recruitment events for all MIT Sloan MBA students. Interviews for full-time recruiting begin in late September and continue until the Thanksgiving holiday. Second-year students are away from campus during the Sloan Innovation Period in January, so their interviews resume in February and continue throughout the spring. January, meanwhile, is a dedicated interview period for first-year students participating in on-campus recruiting. Internship recruiting continues throughout the spring.

Are there particular skills that career services helps students to accentuate during job fairs and recruiting?

Regardless of their preferred industry and job function, and whether they see themselves in settings ranging from startups to global organizations, the Career Development Office prepares our students to demonstrate their competency and experience in analytical skills, taking initiative, leadership and teamwork.

Employers are attracted to our students because they offer a unique combination of the skills needed to analyze the most complex problems, along with the inter-personal and management skills needed to propose and implement solutions.

How does the careers center help MBA students prepare for recruitment events? In what ways does the careers team help match students with companies that will be a good cultural fit for them?

MIT Sloan helps students develop job search skills and contacts that will support them during recruitment events during their time as students and throughout their careers. Through sessions with career advisors, and with the help of a comprehensive library of resources, students assess their personal strengths as well as their values and interests. They also define their industry and functional objectives, develop résumés and complete mock interviews to demonstrate key competencies that align with their objectives.

In addition, students have access to premium industry/company research databases and multiple job boards at both MIT Sloan and MIT’s main campus. They also receive comprehensive education on networking, from developing and maintaining a professional LinkedIn profile, to accessing the alumni directories for both MIT Sloan and the wider MIT alumni community. Finally, students participate in seminars to polish their communication and negotiation skills.

Are there any new companies recruiting on campus? Have you seen a change in industries?

New companies, led by MIT alumni, come to campus on a continual basis to recruit talent to fuel their growth. In their December 2015 report, Entrepreneurship and Innovation at MIT, Edward Roberts, Fiona Murray, and J Daniel Kim of the MIT Sloan School of Management estimate that more than 30,000 active companies have been founded by MIT alumni.

What kind of contact does the Sloan career center have with MBAs after they graduate?

The Career Development Office provides career services to all MIT Sloan alumni as they advance their professional goals. Resources include career advising, access to the MIT Sloan Alumni job board and résumé database, information on creating an executive-level résumé and effective LinkedIn profile, and extensive company, industry and career information resources.