PSE INTERNSHIP STORIES: The Art of Interviewing
PSE INTERNSHIP STORIES: The Art of Interviewing
Featuring Melinda Beyer
By Anita Drapkin
Career Interviews give us an opportunity to connect our passions, hard work, and professional development with employers around the world. Follow along as current Junior, Melinda Beyer, explains how she fell in love with the interview process to find, not only her summer internship, but a company and culture she could call home.
Meet Melinda Beyer
I am a Junior Marketing Major with Human Capital Management and Leadership and Political Science Minors from Lambertville New Jersey, and incoming Sales and Leadership Development Program Intern with E&J Gallo Winery this coming Summer of 2021. On campus I serve on the Associated Student Government Audit & Funding Committee, am a Bridges Scholar, Campus Tour Guide, and member of the Management and Leadership Organization. Within PSE I will be the incoming Director of Community Service, after serving on the Community Service Committee for the past 2 years, in addition to being on 7 Projects: 2 of which I was a project manager for-- the Collab Donation Project and Nationwide Community Service Initiative.
Describe Your Job Search Timeline
“I knew wherever I ended up working my Junior year is where I would end up getting a career. I didn’t want to settle. I know I go in full throttle and 1000% in everything I do rather than accept the first offer that comes my way”
I initially became interested in E&J Gallo my first semester freshman year after connecting with a campus recruiter at PSE’s Post Career Fair. We talked generally about whatI’m interested in and how college is going. I knew I didn’t want to go to work every day and hate my job. I want to surround myself with people as passionate about their work as I am and that is always the energy I felt when speaking with E&J Gallo Representatives over the next 2 years. I always made an effort to reach out to Gallo when they were in town and even connected with them on LinkedIn. So when the career fair Fall of my Junior Year finally came around, I knew that I had been showcasing my built up interest and was ready to apply.
Advice on Making Yourself Standout Before the First Interview?
If you know what company is looking for in that position, tailor your resume using buzz words like “leadership”. You can also make it personal. I mentioned growing up in the restaurant industry specifically while applying for Gallo because I knew it would show a deeper connection I genuinely did have.
What Goes Through Your Mind During an Interview
Firstly I calm myself down. I went in very confident because I knew I had prepared over the past 3 years to show them I was the best candidate for the position and I knew there was nothing more I could do than show them my hard work. I always try to remember that interviewers hear the same thing over and over again because you’ll say what you want to hear, but we can see straight through it.
“I answer questions with authenticity. The generic answer is the first one that pops in my head. But then I just breathe and instead go with the thing I might be scared to say.”
An example would be instead of talking on my sales experience with my work as an Administrative Coordinator, I talked about being a little girl on the New Jersey seashore selling seashells I had hand painted to beach goers at the entrance and giving part of my sales to the ticket checker in the form of candy bars for letting me stand there. This showed more intrinsically what I’m passionate and capable of than a generic experience. Of course you do have to balance tangible experiences as well, but that delicately incorporating that vulnerable aspect really changes how they can see you as a candidate.
I have always believed in placing love over fear and everyday I try to do something that scares me, and this is no exception when it comes to interviews. In interviews you have to be scared. People feel more comfortable with you if you are vulnerable with them first.
How Has PSE Changed the Way You Approach Interviews?
As hard as it is to believe, when I came to college I was very insecure and shy with lots of social anxiety. I joined PSE on a whim and am so grateful I did! PSE gave me the confidence to be my truest self, to reach outside of my comfort zone, and do more than I ever expected out of myself.
I prepared so well before I even thought of applying to Gallo by reaching out to PSE alumni who currently work for the company, Gaby Meissner, and getting her support as well as current member CJ Patton. The encouragement of my brothers and knowing I had worked the last 2 years to prepare myself as best I could to get to the point in the application process is really everything that gave me the confidence to be successful.
PSE Your Business Advantage for Life
Want to learn more about Mel?
Connect with her below!
Melinda Beyer