JESSICA SCANAVINO, 2^nd year MiM/Association Track

“We sometimes have the impression that our student society/association experiences are more significant that our professional experiences. But that is not the case. Student societies and associations are smaller organisations where you are given responsibilities more quickly or even the leading role because we are all the same age. During this seminar, we learned that you cannot be shy about highlighting your experiences and that these experiences, if they were successful ones, will be assessed just like all others.

We were taught how to use the CAR method (context, action, result) in job interviews where you can’t just talk about the skills that you’ve acquired; you also need to give the context and the results. For example, I know how to use a computer programme because I was in a student association and I focused on social networks, and because of the health crisis I created online events where x number of people participated, etc. That makes our experience more unique and helps set us apart from other applicants. It was interesting to see how to use it in the discussion.

I’m leaving on a gap year soon. I’m going to start having interviews and I will be able to apply what I learned during the seminar”.

MATHILDE MALLARD, Master 1, Association Track, Team Challenge Member

“The first day of the seminar was centred on everything we have done since the start of the year. We discussed our experiences and what we’ve accomplished. Even if we were not able to do everything that we wanted to, we still managed to put together something we’re proud of.

I am a part of Team Challenge. I did not complete all of my projects, but I launched DIY Saturdays. In the association, we managed to convey our values and keep the first-year members motivated. During the seminar, I learned to highlight my experiences, my outlook and what I learned about myself. For example, I learned that I want to lead a team and be conciliatory and I learned at what point this would be useful in a mission. This helps me to convey my point in an interview.

We also were grouped together based on the positions we held in our associations. Together, we had to establish a profile summary for this position and determine its required qualities. In doing so, we realised that what type of people we were, which was rewarding”.