My name is Ananya Pochiraju and I am a third-year B.S. in Business Administration with an emphasis in Finance and a minor in Analytics. I am excited to be a Business Controlling Intern at Henkel, a top FMCG company. What makes me most excited is the exposure I will be getting in the finance sector of a large company. I am looking forward to strengthening my skills in Excel and other important Finance/Business Analysis tools, becoming a more well-rounded individual, and becoming equipped with more skills that will make me successful in the job force.

One way I strategized my way into landing this internship was by doing interviews with as many different companies as I could, and getting exposure to different types of potential behavioral interview questions. I also attended Chapman’s Meet the Firms: Finance event, where I met the hiring manager directly and was able to directly give my resume to him, instead of going through a more indirect approach (online application). This was crucial because he was not hiring through other channels, like an online job posting, and was only interested in hiring Chapman students or alumni. By the time I met the Henkel hiring manager, I had experienced doing 3-round interviews with more than ten different companies and received important feedback that I was able to use when interviewing for this position.

The first thing I would say is to be prepared to be rejected. “No news is bad news” is the rule of thumb my dad taught me, and it has helped me move on quicker from the anxiety of waiting to hear back from companies and preparing for the next opportunity on my list. Rejection is part of the application process and is totally normal!

Do research online into potential behavioral questions that might be asked. Take notes on things you might want to include in your responses to these questions, such as meaningful internships and your jobs/responsibilities or times where you showed leadership or a great skill that would be attractive to hiring managers. Make a Google document with everything and share it with your career advisor, if needed! It can be hard to come up with everything on the spot, but outlining potential responses for some of the questions can help and make you seem more calm, collected, and confident in front of interviewers!

Be sure to attend all the events that Chapman offers that pertain to your interests and emphasis! You never know where you might meet the person who will provide you with an amazing opportunity. Stay positive and always remember to find balance. Internships and jobs are important, but physical and mental health always comes first!