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On-Campus Interviews

To participate in an interview, you must first submit a resume. Resumes are reviewed by the employer, who then selects candidates to interview.

Terminology
Students selected for interviews are often called “preselects.” If you are preselected, you can begin signing up on the date shown in the Schedule Details for the opportunity. Sometimes the employer is late in making selections so it’s important to be patient but to also check your J-Connect account often. You can check your interview status under the Interviews tab of your account.

The employer chooses one preselect for each available interview time slot. The employer may also choose alternates. Alternates are not guaranteed time slots, but may sign up for any open interview time slots after preselects have had their opportunity. If you are preselected, you should sign up for an interview promptly so you do not forfeit your time slot to an alternate. You can view the sign-up start and end dates in the Schedule Details for the opportunity.

How will you know if you are selected for an interview?
Preselects will be notified by the Career Center (via email) when the employer has made final decisions about which students to interview. The employer may also send a note directly to you. However, these notifications are a matter of courtesy only. It is each student’s responsibility to check his/her J-Connect account and sign up when preselected for an interview.

Signing up for an interview time slot

1. Select the Interview tab from the homepage of your J-Connect account.
2. At the next page, select the Interview Requests tab. Interviews for which you have submitted resumes will be listed here. If you have been preselected for an interview, your status will be displayed as “Invited.” Note the Signups Start and Signups End dates; you must sign up for an interview during this date range.
3. Click on Schedule Interview. At the next screen, select the interview time you would like and click on Submit.
4. Your scheduled interview will now appear in under the Scheduled Interviews tab.

Preparing for your interview
There are many ways to prepare for interviews. Attend a Career Center interview workshop, read the interview handout, browse the interview books in the Career Center’s library, conduct a mock interview with a career counselor, and use the many resources available to conduct research about the employer. If the employer is holding an information session, make sure to attend it and introduce yourself. The session is important for your interview. Learn more about interviewing

After the interview
At the end of your interview, be sure to (a) ask the interviewer for a business card and (b) ask the interviewer what happens next in the process and when you’ll hear from them. If you do not hear back from the employer within that time, it is appropriate to follow up and reiterate your interest. Mail a thank-you letter within 24 hours. An email thank-you can precede your letter when you know the recruiter will make a decision in the next day or two. The recruiting process is not usually over after one interview. Second-round interviews (and more) are often held on campus and/or on-site at the organizations.

Canceling an OCR interview

You may also remove yourself from the schedule or change your time slot at any time during the signups date range. From the Interviews section of your account, select Scheduled Interviews.
To change your interview time, click on Reschedule. At the next page, select your desired interview time and click Submit.
To cancel your interview, click on the Cancel button. A pop-up window will appear asking if you are certain you want to cancel. Click on Yes.

NOTE: If you cancel your interview, the employer will be notified that you have declined their offer, so do not cancel unless you are certain you are no longer interested.

If the sign-up deadline has passed, you will need to contact the Career Center to cancel or change your interview time. If canceling, you also will need to let the employer know directly that you are no longer interested so the employer can add an additional student to the interview schedule.

The Career Center’s recruiting policies require that interviews be cancelled no later than two business days in advance of the scheduled interview. If you cancel an interview with less than two business days notice (or fail to show up on the date of your interview), you will need to meet with a Career Center staff member. This is a serious inconvenience for employers and may result in exclusion from the On-Campus Recruiting program. (Read the OCR Agreement for details on the no-show policy.)

Receiving an Offer
Make an appointment to see a career counselor if you need advice on how to handle accepting, negotiating, or declining an offer. It is often challenging to negotiate salaries for entry-level positions, but you may want to ask for decision extensions before accepting the offer or to negotiate your start date.

When you accept an offer, withdraw from all other employers to which you have applied. In addition, please update your J-Connect account to reflect that you are “not searching.” This will take your resume out of the Resume Referral program and prevent the Career Center from sending emails to you about new job opportunities.