The weather in Hanover is finally brilliant and "06X" is in full swing -- or so we thought. The bliss of summer took a frustrating turn for a significant portion of the Class of 2008 last week as July 5 came to mean much more than just a chance to recuperate after Independence Day festivities.
Countless sophomores postponed river plans and pong dates to beat the July 5 corporate recruiting deadline set by the 10 financial leviathans that will grace the College next week for on-campus interviewing. As many rushed to prepare and submit cover letters and resumes, some for the first time, I witnessed an unprecedented level of anxiety amongst a student body longing to embrace the quickly fading concept of "sophomore summer." Watching friends transform from fun-loving, blithe 20-year-olds into career-obsessed, ultra-competitive quasi-professionals in the span of one week served as the ultimate motivation for this editorial. While I do not wish to pass absolute judgment on the summer's recruiting program, I believe that all those involved in the process owe it to themselves to truly examine their motives in dedicating so much of their time and sanity to corporate recruiting.
Everyone has encountered the overly confident neophyte during freshman orientation who states, unequivocally, that he or she will be an investment banker. More times than not, these brashly nave individuals have yet to learn what investment banking even is, but knows, without a doubt, that it is for them.
Why? This is the question we must all ask ourselves. Are we applying for these internships because we believe them to be enjoyable learning experiences? Is it about money? Is it about prestige? Is this what we want? These questions, while not all-encompassing, represent what I view as the basic conundrum facing Dartmouth sophomores looking to enter the corporate jungle.
The obsession with getting a leg-up on the competition (i.e. our fellow college students) is the driving force behind the undeniable mania created by this summer's on-campus interview program. The vast majority of Dartmouth students have been trained to overachieve. While there is nothing wrong with aspiring for distinction, I fear that this "training" has taught many individuals on this campus to reach for the goals of parents, professors and the financially-driven culture of the Ivy League while putting aside their own passions and dreams.
Skeptics of the corporate world tend to dismiss matters of money and prestige as yet another example of self-important employees looking solely for individual gain. I disagree to a certain extent. Money and prestige, when complemented by the idea of a satisfying and constructive working experience, are valid factors in a career choice. Making money, as long as one's morality and integrity are maintained throughout, should not be shunned as a vocational objective. Furthermore, none of us would be at Dartmouth if we were not acutely aware of the importance of prestige. Nevertheless, if money or prestige represents the only incentive for submitting a cover letter and resume, it may be necessary to reexamine your intentions and consider what you are really willing to sacrifice for such rewards.
As for corporate recruiting's effects on the individuals involved in the process, we must actively make a crucial distinction between healthy and unhealthy competitiveness. Coming from the competitive Stuyvesant High School in New York City, I could never imagine such madness poking its treacherous head at Dartmouth -- until now. A good friend of mine who attended the McKinsey information session on June 28 described the post-meeting question-and-answer gathering as "nothing short of a feeding frenzy made up of people viciously trying to get some memorable face-time with recruiters." This can obviously be filed under "unhealthy competitiveness." Being competitive with oneself as a kind of motivation for achieving desired outcomes is certainly a healthy competitiveness. It is when our competitive nature morphs into a winner-takes-all-at-any-expense attitude that we enter the dangerous realm of unhealthy competitiveness. For your own sake, do not let corporate recruiting rehabilitate a monster that died when we graduated high school.
The corporate recruiting process is a valuable one. I, indeed, applied to a number of the companies coming to Hanover next week because a job in the financial arena would be a wonderful pre-graduation opportunity. Wanting a great job at a great firm is a worthy target, but we cannot allow it to represent the be-all and end-all. As long as we are certain that this is what we want, that outside influences are not dictating our lives and that we remember the important difference between enthusiasm and obsession, this campus may become a much happier, less stressful place.
