You walk out of the interview feeling pumped. You just gave the best interview of your life. The job is perfect, you have the right skills, and the interviewers gave every sign of offering you the job right then and there. And yet…a few days later, you still got a rejection letter.

It is hard when a job you are really excited about doesn’t work out but there are many extenuating circumstances that are outside of your control that you can’t see as a candidate.

Hiring managers are put in a situation where they would be perfectly happy hiring 3 candidates, but the fact is, there is only 1 opening available.

Here are some of the top reasons why you might not get the job that is outside of your control:

1. Someone else was more qualified.

While you might have been perfectly qualified for the job, someone else might have had more experience or a particular skill set that you don’t have. Maybe the employer didn’t even know they wanted that particular skill until the candidate showed up.

2. An internal employee or an employee referral got the job instead.

When a candidate is a known quantity to the employer or a current employee, the employer will prefer to hire that candidate. In the case of an internal transfer, the company will retain institutional knowledge and know that the candidate will fit into the company culture.

Some organizations (especially government) have a policy of interviewing a minimum amount of candidates – as a result, you might be a filler to meet their quota.

3. You were not a fit with the team dynamics or company culture.

When hiring, employers have to consider more than your skill set. They also have to think about whether your personality and working style will fit into the company’s culture and team dynamics. Maybe they believe one of the executives will not like you (even though you would be a perfectly fine employee), and that’s not something you can tell from the outside.

Don’t let the rejections get you down, because often, it is not a reflection of your worth. Job searching is like matchmaking – many things have to fit for you to be a happy and productive employee who will stay for the long term.

It is also important that you don’t become bitter from your rejections, even if you are rejected repeatedly. It will show when you interact with employers.

The best way to leave a positive impression is to thank the employer for the opportunity, ask politely for feedback, and even ask to stay in touch with the hiring manager. If there are openings in the future, you might get a call to interview for another job!

Straightforward reasons why you should take on an internship abroad (especially through AIESEC!)

1) You’re taken out of your comfort zone. This proves that you’re able to work under pressure and rise up to new challenges. It’s a great thing to mention to future employers.

2)You’ll gain new perspectives. Different countries may have different work ethics, and you will gain knowledge on how things can be done differently. This could then give you an edge when you start looking for work after university.

3) Language skill development. What better way to learn or practice a language then being in an environment where it’s spoken, and where you’re forced to speak some of it. As the world becomes more global, learning languages is an important skill to have.

4) You get to learn about a field while contributing to the community. Especially with our  AIESEC GCDP (Global community development program), it’s a great chance to learn about teaching for example. While you’re learning you’ll also be able to give back to the community where you’re doing the internship (like providing education to kids there!)

5) Food. Face it, when you go into a new country you’ll definitely be looking forward to, and trying out, the different foods the country has to offer. Going on an internship abroad means you get to try new foods, gain new recipes, and eat in new ways you haven’t done so before.

So if you haven’t done so yet, take on an AIESEC internship. For those who have already gone on one, I’m sure they could provide more ample reasons on why you should take on an internship abroad :)

Unless you’re serious about your career and want to gain a head-start in building it, stay away from this article.
With more than 330 million users worldwide, LinkedIn has started giving the recruitment agencies a run for their money as a professional tool to identify and convert job opportunities. The recent collaboration of LinkedIn with the celebrated youth brand- MTV and other big brands like Intel, Mercedez Benz, TCS, Reliance, etc. for their intern requirements is a testimony to this fact.

Without bragging any further on how the professional world in India is slowly waking up to the resourcefulness of LinkedIn, we bring you a few useful tips you could use as a student or a recent graduate to tap the full potential of LinkedIn for getting hired -

First things first, complete your profile

Many students just start connecting randomly to the HR managers of various companies they are interested in without even completing their profiles. It is as good as sending a blank resume to a prospective employer.

• Fill out the summary section, experience, and education (see Pic 1). In case you do not have any prior experience, you could mention your projects (see Pic 2) and in addition, you could also add certifications. Many companies like AMCAT, Internshala, etc. provide certifications tailor-made to be added to your LinkedIn profile (see Pic 4).
• Upload a photo which is professional and apt. (see Pic 2)
• Most importantly, have a very specific profile statement; it is something that the employer sees first while searching for prospective candidates. For example, describing yourself as a ‘Student at XYZ University‘ is not as meaningful to potential employers as ‘Internship-seeking Master of Science student.’
• Include keywords in your profile. That’s how the employers will find you! If someone wants an MBA intern then it will be much easier to find you if your introductory headline reads ‘Internship-seeking MBA student’, isn’t it?

Advance your search and connect the right way

Before LinkedIn, one would have had to look up for some contact at a company or call the front desk cold and ask for HR for recruitment/information purposes. But LinkedIn has reduced this tedious process into a few simple searches on its platform.

Let us assume you are interested to do an internship at McKinsey. So, either you could perform anadvanced search (see Pic 5) to find profiles with keywords ‘HR – McKinsey’ and filter it further (using different other parameters like location, etc.) or you could use LinkedIn for students and recent graduates (see Pic 7) – a platform that enables its users to search exclusively for internships and entry-level jobs offered by companies from all around the world.

Next, when adding connections, make sure you personalize your message. LinkedIn sends a default message in the connect request and gives you an option to edit it. For example- Saying ‘Hi John, Hope you’re well. Wanted to connect to you regarding internship openings at Internshala. Thanks’  has a better chance of getting a reply than ‘Hi John, I would like to add you to my professional network in LinkedIn.’

LinkedIn also has this wonderful feature of importing contacts from your email accounts (see Pic 6). On top of it, you can also ask for an introduction to a new connect from a person you already know or are connected with on LinkedIn (see Pic 8). Write a message to the person who will introduce you and be clear about why you want to get introduced.

Join relevant groups, company pages

There are university alumni groups, industry-specific groups, etc. on LinkedIn. Join groups and company pages which will allow you to connect with people working in your desired field or industry.

Be an active member, check out the discussions and try to contribute or may be even start a new discussion. Never make comments like “Can anyone get me a job here?”; unlike Facebook, LinkedIn is a network of professionals and that warrants the need of employing proper etiquette while communicating. Even though this is a lengthy method of making relevant contacts, it can highlight you in front of a prospective employer on a very professional platform.

Recommendations & endorsements

Just like a physical resume has recommendations from your colleagues or professors, LinkedIn also provides such options. Furthermore, it also allows other connections in your profile to endorse your skills. A recommendation or endorsement enhances the chances of your profile being considered by a prospective employer. Ask relevant people in your circle (like professors) for recommendations.

Do Research

If you have got an interview at XYZ Company, then you could use LinkedIn to know about the latest happenings in the company which can really give you a solid head-start. It also allows you to build a network of professionals working there.

LinkedIn will surely help create your way into your dream company, but only if you use it as an active participant. If you are not yet on this platform then you need to step in fast and set up your opportunity!

A career as an automobile engineer is for people who are driven and passionate about cars. They must have considerable understanding and interest in mechanics, electronics, and mathematics as these are vital skills required for this career path. Automobile engineers must be organized individuals who are able to work in a methodical manner. 

People in this career are required to communicate with other professionals on a regular basis, both from within the field and outside it. Hence, this career is only for those with fluent communication skills. While automobile engineers must be innovative, eager workers, they must not get carried away.

Automobile engineers hold a wide variety of responsibilities. Their primary purpose is to maximize the feasibility and design of automobiles keeping costs to an absolute minimum. 

A typical professional in this field spends a lot of time on researching and designing both systems and machines for automobiles. The designs are initially done in the form of drawings and blueprints. Automobile engineers then apply physical and mathematical principles to these plans to make sure they are viable. The planning is done after considerable research, and then altered again after linking the plans to the available research.

Once the planning process is done, the designing begins. Automobile engineers are responsible for transforming their plans and research into a viable end product. They must oversee the entire process of manufacturing, with meticulous attention to detail.

After the end product is manufactured, the most important part of an automobile engineer’s job begins. Testing is a rigorous process that must be done with utmost care. This procedure generally entails focusing on each and every component of an automobile to ensure it is able to function in every imaginable condition in a safe and secure manner. 

Automobile engineers generally tend to specialize in a particular area. The most common areas of specialization include exhaust systems, engines and structural designs. No matter what an engineer decides to specialize in, he or she is almost always required to work on all three aspects of the automobile engineering process; research, designing as well as testing. 

There is also often a financial side to this job, which involves preparing costs of buying materials and producing systems. It is also important to realize the legal aspects of this job. Automobile engineers must be up to date with all safety regulations, so that they do not violate legislation related to automobile engineering procedure.

Automobile engineers generally know they want to get into the field at a fairly young age, so they are generally people who studied natural sciences and mathematics in high school. This gives them the edge to get a degree in engineering, which is an essential prerequisite to become an automobile engineer. 

Additionally, while it is not necessary, a master’s degree in a field such as automotives or automotive engineering gives prospective automobile engineers a distinct advantage.

A graduate engineer at a major OEM (original equipment manufacturer, ie carmaker) gets a stipend of Rs. 28,000 to Rs. 30,000 a month during training. This can go up to Rs. 40,000 till s/he is confirmed. A line leader/assistant manager can earn anything from Rs. 40,000 to Rs. 80,000 a month, depending on their experience in the industry.

According to PayScale India, an automobile engineer can earn anywhere between Rs. 250,000 and Rs. 600,000 per annum including average bonuses and commissions received on the job. The highest salaries were paid by vehicle manufacturers whereas product development engineering firms paid a lot less to automobile engineers they hired. A division head with 18 years’ experience can make anything from Rs. 25 lakh to Rs. 30 lakh per annum.

Automobile engineers work varying hours per week depending on the amount of work they have assigned during a particular week. They may work anywhere between a 40 hour week and a 55 hour week, but may even be required to work overtime if there are some outstanding deadlines or emergencies. 

Automobile engineers spend a lot of time in front of a computer on their desks. When they are not doing research in their office, they are at plants monitoring the manufacturing of the automobiles they planned and their testing. This may involve spending lengthy periods of time in noisy, dirty factory environments. 

Automobile engineering is a career path that no one will deny is unimportant. There are millions of vehicles on roads in every corner of the world, and automobile engineers are the people responsible for that. They feel an immense amount of satisfaction when they see a machine as intricate as a modern automobile completed when they are the ones who contributed towards its design. 

Automobile engineers earn a considerable salary, more so than many other types of engineers. They have a fair amount of job security as they begin gaining experience. People in the field are generally passionate about automobiles, and so have the added advantage of working with something they truly appreciate.

The job often requires automobile engineers to work under the immense pressure of tight deadlines. Moreover, they have the lives of millions of people in their hands as they do their work. The slightest mistakes in planning, designing or testing could be catastrophic. 

Automobile engineers often have to deal with noisy factory conditions for extended periods of time. They have to pay scrupulous attention to detail at every aspect of their job, which can often get monotonous. 

While the automobile industry has been on a decline in the past five years in most areas of the world, the number of people who opt for this career is quite low because of the high level of training and specialization required to become successful. As a result, there is a fair amount of competition in the field, especially for the most lucrative jobs. The number of jobs in the field is likely to increase at a slow pace in the next few years.

In the USA, the Midwest is the best place to be an automobile engineer because of the concentration of automobile manufacturing firms in the region. In Europe, Germany is the leading automobile manufacturer. 
There is a large demand for automobile engineers in Japan, South Korea, China and India.

More specifically in India, the Maharashtra province offers the most jobs as well as the highest level of salary in this field. The city of Bangalore is also a good place to be an automobile engineer within India.

To become an automobile engineer, After completing Class 12 from the science stream one must have a BE or B.Tech. in automobile engineering. Even degree holders in electrical or mechanical branch can go in for specialization in automobile engineering at the postgraduate level. Diploma holders can take the AMIE exam to be at par with degree holders.

Globalization and incredible growth of automobile industry have resulted in numerous opportunities for automobile engineers not only in India but abroad as well. Qualified candidates with excellent communication skills are in much demand in reputed companies like Volvo, Ashok Leyland, Telco, Ford, Hyundai and Maruti Automobile. Automobile industry giants provide job opportunities to qualified engineers in their production plants. Several other private motor repair and maintenance service stations, automobile garages or workshops also offer job opportunities for qualified automobile engineers.

State road transport corporations, private transport companies, insurance companies and motor vehicle departments are some more avenues.Some of the job roles in the field of automobile engineering are listed below:

• Automobile Engineering Technicians
• Safety Engineering
• Emissions Research
• NVH (Noise, Vibration and Harshness) Engineers
• Performance Engineers
• Vehicle Dynamics Controllers
• Operations Research
• Designing
  

Graduates and postgraduates in automobile engineering are likely to get good openings in manufacturing and marketing fields. Diploma holders in automobile engineering can start their own business such as automobile maintenance workshop or automobile garages. Those who complete M.Tech or PhD can take up teaching.

B.Tech holders in Automobile Engineering with an MBA can reach the front line in marketing management careers.

Aspirants with the knowledge of CAD (Computer Aided Designing), CAM (Computer Aided Manufacturing), and ERP, can find employment as designers. They can design newer models of vehicles by joining the Research and Development wing of companies.

Those who have completed BE or B.Tech in Automobile Engineering with a valid GATE (Graduate Aptitude Test in Engineering) score can enrol for M.Tech or Ph.D programmes in automobile, automotive engineering and allied branches.

Some of the universities offering M.Tech in related subjects are:

Osmania University, Hyderabad offers M.Tech in Mechanical Engineering with CAD/ CAM as specialisation. Candidates who have completed BE/ B.Tech/ AMIE in Mechanical/ Automobile/ Aeronautical/ Industrial/ Production/ Marine engineering or an allied subject can apply for this course. The admission is based on performance at GATE/ PGECET. For more details, please visit www.osmania.ac.in

JNTU, Hyderabad offers M.Tech Mechanical Engineering with CAD/ CAM as specialisation. The admission is based on performance at GATE/ entrance test. For further details, please visit www.jntu.ac.in

Veermata Jijabai Technological Institute, Mumbai offers M.Tech in Mechanical Engineering with specialisation in Automobile Engineering. Any BE/ B.Tech Mechanical/ Automobile Engineer can apply for this course.