As a marketing professor at a top MBA program, one of the challenges that students have is navigating “off-campus” recruiting, which refers to a recruiting process that takes place outside of the campus environment. Because the process happens beyond an institution’s career center, it typically requires that students identify target companies/opportunities and pursue them on their own. As you can imagine, this is far more opaque and challenging than applying to a company that comes to campus.
I observed a student that recently navigated this process with grit, determination, and success. Champe Fisher, currently a second year MBA student at the Darden School of Business at the University of Virginia, was committed to pursuing an off-campus recruiting path and had a disciplined approach to doing so. To help others who choose to pursue a more non-traditional recruiting approach, I share insights from his journey below.
Background
Fisher arrived at Darden with a unique background. After graduating from Penn State in 2019 with a degree in Journalism, he moved to Connecticut to work for ESPN as a Production Assistant. His work at ESPN consisted primarily of editing video content and writing scripts for a variety of studio shows, including working on various editions of SportsCenter, the flagship news and information show at ESPN. Because SportsCenter would air around 10pm EST (at the earliest), it was a challenging lifestyle (working late, on weekends, on holidays, etc.) but it was rewarding as a huge sports fan and lifelong ESPN fanatic. Fisher arrived at Darden feeling like he “needed a change to take the next step forward in my career.”
Internship Goal and Approach
Fisher decided on pursuing an MBA as he wanted to move into a more strategic role: “Ideally, I’d be focused on something in the sports/entertainment/media realm, because that’s where much of my personal interest and professional experience lies. I applied to a ton of different positions across function, industry, location, etc.”
Fisher took a very broad approach to achieving his goal: “I applied far and wide. With an unusual background that wasn’t rooted in any sort of business-centric function, I found it challenging in some cases to get looks for roles. To be thorough, I sent out hundreds of introductory emails and LinkedIn messages to a variety of people (some of whom I had no connection with whatsoever). While many didn’t respond, the ones that did turned out to be crucial in my internship search process. You must be relentless in this way, especially if you’re coming from an atypical background and are recruiting for something off the beaten path!”
What happened
After sending out hundreds of LinkedIn messages, Fisher “ended up connecting with someone on LinkedIn who works at an entertainment technology company in San Francisco. I think a key was that I reached out after getting a LinkedIn job suggestion. The day after our conversation, I got an email with an invitation for a preliminary interview. Three interviews later, I got the job and started looking for places to live in SF. I had a wonderful summer personally and professionally, which I’m very thankful for.”
Learnings
When queried about his key learnings, Fisher indicates that “sometimes, the best opportunity will come from an unexpected place. I certainly didn’t see myself ending up at a tech company in SF for the summer – I grew up on the east coast and had never been to the city prior to my internship. It turned out to be one of the most memorable experiences of my life.
I also learned that being present, pleasant and engaged goes a long way. People can pick up on your energy quickly, and it can sink your coffee chat quickly, especially if you’re chatting with someone whom you don’t have a previous relationship or connection with.”
Advice
Fisher provided seven suggestions for anybody trying to recruit off-campus.
1) “My biggest piece of advice is to be authentic and try your best to connect your experience or background with the company, person or role you’re targeting. Many people go into these chats asking questions that could be easily answered by a quick Google search or looking at the company website – you don’t want to do that.”
2) As many times as you don’t get a response, send 10 more outreach messages to new people. It’s really a numbers game. Don’t let a bad stretch discourage you from firing your shot – it will pay off if you’re persistent and dedicated.
3) I’d also advise getting LinkedIn Premium. You can send unlimited direct messages, which is huge if you’re in a more niche field. The more the merrier!
4) When chatting with someone, start with your background (educational history, work history, anything interesting that connects with the position/company/person’s background). Have an agenda and be prepared to lead with a few questions to ensure you are organized and maximize the opportunity.
5) Don’t ask for a job on the call – ask for their advice and wisdom on how you can accomplish your job-seeking goal. Asking for a job can put the other person in a difficult position.
6) If someone at a company I was targeting had a clear connection to me (work, education, personal interest, etc.) I’d almost certainly reach out to them. Otherwise, I’d try to gauge who would be most likely to respond (based on LinkedIn profile activity) and whose position/experience lines up best with what I want to do. In other cases, I’d shoot somewhat randomly.
7) Always send a thank you note. It’s easy to forget, but it can make a big difference.
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