One more weekend ...

... before OCIs. On Tuesday, October 11th, many students in the Class of '07 will head to downtown Kingston for interviews with Toronto employers. Classes have been cancelled. Professors have passed along words of wisdom, stories and advice. Third year students have graciously volunteered their time to act as "friendly", "difficult" and "preoccupied" interviewers for us to experience mock interviews.

As a class, we started preparing for this process in the first semester of our first year. A Career Service Officer visited our small section to talk about the expectations. Over the summer, we revamped our resumes, drafted cover letters and prepared our applications. And recently, we've watched the "OCI video" that follows three students through the entire process. At every turn, we've been told (over and over again) that there are alternatives to working on Bay Street. Most students will not get jobs through the OCI process but many will find work through other means.

I want to share a story from a cool prof. She was going through the OCI process and she was invited to a "champagne and ice cream soiree". She arrived and was promptly served a flute of champagne. But there was no ice cream in the glass. So she went to the bar and complained, "you forgot to put ice cream in mine". Looking at her curiously, the bartender scooped some ice cream and added it to her champagne. She turned back, started to chat with an associate with the firm and realized that no one else had ice cream. Oops. Advice from prof: sometimes it's better not to stand out.

:)

Good luck to everyone! I hope you enjoy your Thanksgiving. We have much to be thankful for.