酷兔英语

Two months from the end of my MBA, a frightening feeling of "back-to-reality" is beginning to set in, and I am wondering whether it has all been worth it. The global economy and the job market are the worst they have been in years, my bank account is nearly empty, and I feel like I need to sleep for a month before I feel rested again.

Of course, not all is dire. The fifth and final term of the year has started, and it is wonderful to see the friends who left for two terms on the Singapore campus at the end of 2007, now that they are back to enjoy the last term in Fontainebleau. The warm weather has finally arrived after a dreary French winter, and we can once again enjoy warm sun on our faces on the lawns of Insead's beautiful campus near the famed forest where many a French king once hunted.

Sitting outside with friends on a sunny May day is the best - and cheapest - way to burn away the mist of worry hanging over many of us as we wonder where we will end up and whether we will be able to find work when thousands seem to be losing jobs in the financial and business capitals of the western world.

Frankly, the season for on-campus recruitment activities, which is drawing to an end, has been a very difficult one for me, and many of my fellow MBA participants. There was a whirlwind of presentations by a myriad of companies, each followed by cocktails or dinner, in a nook of the Insead cafeteria, a restaurant in town, or sometimes a grand hall of the Fontainebleau castle.

While I enjoy cocktail parties as much as the next person, the relentless charm offensive by recruiters telling similar stories is draining, particularly as it is compressed into the same busy schedule of classes and coursework as usual, and we also need to make time for writing applications.

Then there is the bait-and-switch - as much as the company presentations appear designed to convince students that opportunities are limitless and that corporate culture is all about finding the right people and giving them a chance to grow, when the applications are in and interviews start, the message sometimes changes.

On the occasions when applications are not rejected outright, interviewers occasionally seem to think that their role is to make applicants feel stupid, inadequate, or incompetent in order to screen them out.

This is by no means a general approach, but I and many others have experienced it often enough that it bears mentioning as a fairly widespread practice.

This may be a test of the applicant's mettle, and clearly it is necessary to select those students who are able to handle the pressure inherent in working for many of the firms that recruit on campus, but it is a rude awakening for many students who had imagined a charmed life full of possibility earlier in the programme.

I cannot help but wonder why recruiters forget to treat potential employees with respect after the effort expended to convince candidates to apply for jobs at their companies.

After all, isn't spending €50,000 plus living expenses and opportunity cost a sign of motivation? Do people who have been accepted into one of the world's most selective business schools really need to be tested for their ability to do mental arithmetic? Do we really need to be told that we have great leadershippotential but that what really matters is that we could not do long division with pen and paper fast enough?

Fortunately, other recruiters take a different approach - one that seems to me to be superior when dealing with such a talented and technically-skilled pool of people as Insead students. They evaluate leadershippotential, fit with the company culture and strategic objectives, and actually make an effort to get to know the human being who is sitting in front of them.

This does not mean that they have to be any less selective in finding the right person for the company they represent, but it seems to me a more useful way to actually identify candidates with whom the mutual fit is strong and who may be with the company for years to come.

As someone with a very non-traditional profile (economics undergraduate, 10 years working as an economist and policyadviser for Canada's foreign ministry), I knew that it might be challenging for me to make the transition to a private sector job.

Perhaps I underestimated the challenge - I think my age (36), may be putting me at a disadvantage in two ways. First, I am less inclined to apply to dozens of jobs hoping one will work out, since I have clear ideas about what I want and do not want. Second, I am less inclined to say what people want to hear in an interview because I have come to realise who I am and who am not.

I believe that only if I present myself positively but truthfully will I find the job which is right for me, as opposed to being hired for presenting a false image of what makes me tick.

Fortunately, I am glad to report that despite the challenges, many of my friends are starting to get good job offers, and after the gloom of April, the sun is once again shining down on the campus.

But, like many of the slightly older participants at Insead, I am unlikely find work through the official on-campus channels that are so well organised by the school's career services, or via formal recruiting programmes at major firms, consultancies, or banks, aimed at a younger demographic.

I am confident, however, that a conscious search for those back doors that are open and welcoming will, in the end, allow me to find the right opportunity.

Until then, I will keep enjoying simple pleasures - such as the spring sun - until I can count on a regular pay packet again.

在我MBA学业即将结束的前两个月,一种"回归现实"的可怕感觉开始降临,我开始怀疑,所有的这一切是否值得。全球经济与就业市场已进入近年来最糟糕的阶段,我的银行户头几乎为零,我觉得自己在再次感到安心前,需要睡上一个月的时间。

当然,并非所有的事情都那么可怕。第五学期已经开始,这也是最后一个学期。再次见到2007年底赴新加坡校区学习两个学期的朋友们,看到他们回到枫丹白露来享受最后一个学期,也是一件美妙的事情。法国阴郁的冬日已成过去,温暖的天气终于来临,欧洲工商管理学院(Insead)美丽的校园媲邻以往法国许多国王狩猎过的那片著名森林,我们在草坪上可以再次享受到晒在脸庞上的暖阳。

在5月份阳光明媚的天气里,与朋友们坐在户外,是驱散我们许多人满脸愁云的最好方式--也是最便宜的方式。因为在西方世界的金融及商业都市里,成千上万的人面临失业,此时此刻,大家都在思忖各自的前途,以及我们是否能找到工作。

坦率地说,即将结束的校园招聘季活动,对我来说一直是件很难的事情,对于许多参加MBA学习的校友来说,也是如此。无数家公司像旋风般相继召开宣讲活动,每一次活动过后,都是鸡尾酒会或晚宴,地点或是设在欧洲工商管理学院餐厅的角落,或是设在市区的一家餐馆,有时则是在枫丹白露城堡的一间大厅内。

虽然我和别人一样喜爱鸡尾酒会,但招聘者讲着千篇一律的故事,展开那种无休无止的魅力攻势,却让人精疲力竭。况且,这种事还得要挤进一如既往繁忙的课程和作业安排中,而我们还需要挤出时间来填写工作申请。

此后就出现了挂羊头卖狗肉的情况--每家公司的宣讲似乎设计得是让学生们确信:机会无限,而本公司的文化就是要找到合适人选,给予他们成长的机会。但等到你填好申请并开始面试时,情况时常会出现变化。

在求职申请未被直接驳回的情况下,面试者们有时似乎会认为,他们的职责就是让申请者感到自己很笨、不称职、或是能力不足,以便将他们筛选掉。

这绝对不是一种通行的做法,但我和其他许多人都多次经历过这种事,因此有必要提一下,这是一种相当广泛的做法。

这也许是对申请者勇气的测试,显然对于许多进行校园招聘的公司来说,有必要挑选那些能够处理工作固有压力的学生。但对于许多在学业初期想象充满种种可能性的美好生活的学生来说,这样的对待不啻于一种粗暴的唤醒。

我不得不想,在花费精力说服求职者到公司来应聘之后,为何招聘者还会忘记如何尊重各位潜在的雇员?

毕竟,花费5万多欧元的生活费和机会成本,难道不是表明一个人的动力所在吗?难道被全球最挑剔的商学院录取的学生,真的还需要测试一下他们的心算能力吗?我们真的需要被告知,虽然自己拥有巨大的领导力潜能,但真正管用的,还是我们能否快速用纸笔计算出一长串的除法吗?

幸运的是,其他一些招聘者采取了不同的做法--似乎在我看来,在对待欧洲工商管理学院这批富有才干、技术熟练的人才们时,这是上乘的办法。他们会评估一个人的领导力潜能,能否适应公司的文化与战略目标,是否确实花了力气去了解坐在自己对面的这个人。

这并不意味着他们代表公司来物色最佳人选时就不那么挑剔。但在我看来,在求职者当中真正找到那些相互适应程度较高的人选,以及哪些人也许会在今后数年留在这个公司,这是一种更有用的方式。

作为一个资历很不传统的人(经济学本科,在加拿大外交部任经济学家及政策顾问的10年工作经验),我知道对于我来说,转行到私营部门工作,可能富有挑战性。

也许我低估了这项挑战--我想我的年龄(36岁)大概使我在两方面处于不利。首先,我不太愿意申请十多份工作,然后希望得到其中的一份,因为我清楚地了解自己想做和不想做的事情。其次,我不太愿意在面试时说人们想听的话,因为我已经认识到自己是哪种人。

我相信,只要我积极而真实地展现自己,我会找到一份适合我的工作,而不是展现令我加分的虚假形象,让自己被聘用。

幸运的是,尽管有种种挑战,我还是乐于告知大家,我有许多朋友开始收到不错的录用函。四月的阴霾过后,阳光再一次普照校园。

但是,就像欧洲工商管理学院里许多年龄稍大的学员一样,我不太可能通过商学院就业服务部门精心组织的官方校园招聘渠道,或是通过大公司、咨询机构或银行那些面向较年轻人员的一些正式招聘计划来找到工作。

不过,我有信心,只要我有意识地探寻那些开启并欢迎我的其它门路,我终将找到合适的机遇。

眼下,我将继续享受各种简单的快乐--例如春日的阳光--直至我再度能够依赖一份按期发放的工资单。
关键字:英语阅读
生词表:
  • drawing [´drɔ:iŋ] 移动到这儿单词发声 n.画图;制图;图样 四级词汇
  • whirlwind [´wə:l,wind] 移动到这儿单词发声 n.旋风;猛烈的势力 四级词汇
  • myriad [´miriəd] 移动到这儿单词发声 n.极大数量 a.无数的 四级词汇
  • relentless [ri´lentləs] 移动到这儿单词发声 a.无情的;坚韧的 六级词汇
  • compressed [kəm´prest] 移动到这儿单词发声 a.压缩的 六级词汇
  • incompetent [in´kɔmpitənt] 移动到这儿单词发声 a.不称职的 六级词汇
  • experienced [ik´spiəriənst] 移动到这儿单词发声 a.有经验的;熟练的 四级词汇
  • widespread [´waidspred] 移动到这儿单词发声 a.广布的;普遍的 四级词汇
  • inherent [in´hiərənt] 移动到这儿单词发声 a.固有的,天生的 六级词汇
  • awakening [ə´weikəniŋ] 移动到这儿单词发声 n.&a.觉醒(中的) 六级词汇
  • arithmetic [ə´riθmətik] 移动到这儿单词发声 n.算术 四级词汇
  • profile [´prəufail] 移动到这儿单词发声 n.侧面 vt.画...侧面 六级词汇
  • economist [i´kɔnəmist] 移动到这儿单词发声 n.经济学家;节俭的人 四级词汇
  • policy [´pɔlisi] 移动到这儿单词发声 n.政策;权谋;保险单 四级词汇
  • transition [træn´ziʃən, -´si-] 移动到这儿单词发声 n.转变;过渡 四级词汇
  • unlikely [ʌn´laikli] 移动到这儿单词发声 a.不像的;未必可能的 六级词汇
  • packet [´pækit] 移动到这儿单词发声 n.盒 vt....打成小包 四级词汇