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Internships are a great, hands-on way to explore a career path or get an inside look at a company that interests you. But they usually require a time commitment of several months and might even require relocating.
Unless, of course, you can be a virtual intern for a day!
In May 2022, Recruitomics Consulting hosted our very first virtual intern through the Rutgers University Intern for a Day (IFaD) Program, run by the Office of Career Exploration & Success. The program helps provide immersive experiences so that students can gain insight into possible future job settings, connect classroom learning with real-world applications, and gain exposure to different employers and careers.
We offered to host a one-day intern knowing that we could provide insight not only into the world of scientific recruiting, but also into the experience of working at a fully remote company. Plus, we had a Rutgers alumna who was excited to connect with current students!
Zherui (Jennifer) Wang, a rising second-year student at Rutgers, matched with us for the May 2022 program. Below are Ms. Wang’s reflection on her Intern for a Day experience with Recruitomics Consulting, lightly edited for clarity.
A virtual work environment:
“I was a little nervous before this virtual meeting with Recruitomics Consulting, but soon I was not after joining. The team is very welcoming, so I had a really good feeling about the company from the start. Alison and Spencer introduced me to what the company does. I was surprised to learn that Recruitomics Consulting is a fully virtual company even before the pandemic. At the same time, I think it’s really cool because this can help build a diverse, inclusive team without being limited by the geographic locations of talented people and can serve customers across the world.”
Insights into the recruiting process:
“I was assigned a job [simulation] about one of the company’s job processes, which is screening potential candidates for companies. The screening process is much harder than I thought it would be. I learned that not all jobs that seem easy are easy. I will never really learn about a job until I actually try it. One piece of advice from their team member, Alison, [was] that the requirement list for the applicant is only a wish list. Never not apply to a job I wanted just because I do not match one of the requirements listed. I will never know until I try. I think this is a piece of great takeaway advice, and hearing about their company module has diffused my thoughts of job options.“
Alumni connections and company values:
“Later, I also had a chance to happily chat with a Rutgers alumna, Daniela, and shared with her the challenges I had faced when doing the screening process. Then, I was able to meet and ask some career questions with two other employees from the company, Rachel and Carleen. They kindly shared their personal experiences and provided me with some career advice. Through them, I had also learned more about the company and many of their great values like diversity, equity, inclusion, work-life balance, etc. At last, I had the opportunity to join the company’s ‘Happy Hour,’ where I got to meet almost all the employees virtually, introduce myself, and learn more about them.”
Final thoughts:
“I am happy that my school Rutgers provides this kind of opportunity, and special thanks to Bethany, the [candidate] education manager at Recruitomics, who had reached out, communicated with me, and arranged the whole thing. It was a pleasant experience to intern a day at Recruitomics Consulting.”
