This may be a bit of a shock, but focusing on the “sustainability” part of my business education had nothing to do with landing my dream job. Let me explain:
I graduated in 2011 as a member of the 8th Cohort into an economy that had no room for me. With my Sustainable Business MBA in hand, I applied over and over again to companies that I had dreamt of working with for years, sending out resumes and cover letters that I had perfected after hours of tweaking. Proudly touting the education in Sustainability I had earned, months passed by, slowly crushing my spirit and self-esteem after these same companies wouldn’t even confirm receipt of my application. Times were tough, and my patience was growing thin.
I came to realize that focusing on selling just the “Sustainability” side of my Sustainable Business degree wasn’t getting me anywhere, so I started thinking about the “business” side, as well. Combining the business skills I gained while at BGI (entrepreneurship and social media knowledge gave me the confidence to start a small consultation business to keep the lights on while I looked elsewhere) with my desire to make the world a better place eventually led me to my dream job. Luckily for me, the skills and network I gained at BGI were the most valuable aspects of my education.
First, I tapped into the BGI network for informational interviews. BGI’s practice of developing rock-solid connections and relationships among students is one of the greatest benefit of the entire institute. I reached out to set up informational interviews over the phone or a cup of coffee with anyone who would meet me; mostly BGI alumni or other members of my cohort. This turned out to be the most important part of my job search: I eventually got my job because of the power of the BGI network.
Second, I focused on the skills I developed while enrolled in the MBA program. BGI is on the cutting edge of education, experimenting with techniques and technology that other schools are scared to try. The distance-learning and virtual-team skills I used everyday while a student at BGI directly translated into useful skills and practices that employers were looking for. They might have not cared about my desire to save the world, but they sure cared that I could set up a collaborative spreadsheet online.
Eventually my job search came to an end with a phone call from a BGI classmate who was working at a startup called Exo Labs. The team at Exo was growing and needed another employee. Exo Labs focuses on using technology to improve the quality of STEM education, inspiring the next generation of scientists. This is what I had been looking for: here was my chance to get as much experience possible in a wide variety of tasks. In any start-up you need to wear more than a few hats. At Exo Labs I would have responsibilities with marketing, sales, customer service, manufacturing, and whatever else needed to be done. To top it all off, I wouldn’t have to sacrifice my desire to make the world a better place.
The combination of skills gained at BGI and ability to work on a broad range of tasks simultaneously made me a top candidate, eventually leading me to land a position at the company. From my own experience at BGI, I know that any graduate will be top-tier. Any time we need to hire someone new I will automatically turn to the same BGI network that helped me, and I’ll always be available for an informational interview.
about the author![Alex Salkin]()
Alex Salkin is the Customer Account Manager at Exo Labs. Their mission is to improve science education and ignitecuriosity in the next generation of students. They are currently running a Kickstarter to create a pilot program to get their products into the hands of educators. Alex can be contacted at: Alex.Salkin@gmail.com.