For students

• A dose of perspective
• Getting started
• Resumes and more
• Reviewing the options
• "Preparing to Lead" summer internships
  • Overview
  • Requirements and schedule for participation
  • Our "Founding Leaders"
  • Summer 2008 Opportunities
  • How to apply
• International opportunities
• Alumni Careers Network
• Career Services calendar
• Help

For employers

• Introduction
• "Preparing to Lead" summer internships
  • Overview
  • Requirements and schedule for participation
  • Our "Founding Leaders"
• International summer internships

Internships: Resumes and more

Princeton's curriculum of mathematics, natural science, and engineering -- combining general principles with specific applications -- prepares you well for a variety of opportunities in the world. Through your resume, correspondence, and interviews, you have the chance to communicate your desires, skills and accomplishments to a prospective employer.

The Resume Guide, at the Office of Career Services site, is a thorough guide to the ins and outs of what makes a good resume.

In addition to your resume, you will also be communicating with prospective employers through your cover letter that you send along with your resume as well as other correspondence throughout the hiring process. This correspondence is your chance to communicate your specific knowledge about the company and opportunity. It's a chance to show that you've done your homework about the company and how you are uniquely qualified to fill the role. The Cover Letter & Business Correspondence Guide provides solid information on the nuts and bolts of this flavor of communication. Even with a perfect resume, poor correspondence can hurt your prospects for getting the internship or job. Use the writing skills you're developing to make the best of it.

While some find interviews to be stressful, much of this stress can be avoided through good preparation. As a basis for preparation, you should ask yourself "What motivates you to seek this position?". An interviewer might phrase it as "Why do you want to work at ThisCo?".

The interviewer seeks to evaluate:

• whether or not you have the skills and knowledge to do the job effectively
• how motivated and enthusiastic you are about the position
• how well your personality "fits" with the organization and its current employees

Like the simulations you do in the lab, interview simulations, or mock interviews, can be a valuable way to understand the effects that certain questions will have on your thinking. You can make an appointment for a mock interview session with a career counselor at the Office of Career Services. For a complete guide to getting ready for an interview, see Preparing for Interviews.

Next: Reviewing the options...