Name: Kaysha Nguyen

Company Name: Siemens

Position: Strategic Student Program Academic Business Development Intern

Industry: Software and PLM (Product Life Management)

Graduate Degree: MBA

Year of Graduation: 2022

What excites you about this internship?

I am most excited about this internship because it will help me transition into my career. In addition to obtaining my MBA at Chapman, I am able to start my career in the industry I am interested in which is Product Management. As a recruiter previously, I knew it would be difficult to make the transition. However, this opportunity at Siemens will introduce me to Product Development and enable me to grow my career after graduation and beyond. I am excited to have an international company on my resume while learning more and more every day!

How did you strategize landing this role? 

I applied to 20-30 jobs a day and spent at least 30-45 minutes on all of the job boards and LinkedIn, Handshake, and Indeed.

I edited my resume multiple times and made sure to convey that I wanted to make a career change from recruiting. Additionally, I made sure to include skills that I learned in recruiting that would be transferable to product management or process improvement.

When I interviewed with the director, I made sure to make it like a conversation. I was also able to connect on a couple things we had in common. 

What advice would you give to anyone looking for an internship/job in this market?

Make sure that your resume is very applicable to the job you are applying for. If that means different jobs, then cater to each one. This is very crucial especially in the bullet points below each position. It’s as if you’re doing your interview through your resume! 

Build rapport with your interviewer and sell yourself really well! If you’re looking to transition, make sure that you talk about how your skills are transferable to the position you are interviewing for. 

Always mention how you can add value to the team whether the interviewer asks or not!