NU Talent Connect Success Tips & FAQ’s

NU Talent Connect Step by Step Guide for Success

Talent Connect is Northeastern University’s biannual, university-wide, boutique, virtual recruiting event.  It enables employers to host an open student/job-candidate forum.  This event is not designed as a traditional virtual career fair, but rather as a group interaction to facilitate effective recruitment.  The Talent Connect sessions allow for learning more about each other – the employers’ businesses and career opportunities and the students’ interest and qualifications. Following these sessions, employers have the ability to identify and interview appropriate students towards the goal of meeting their recruitment needs.

  1. Attend Career Design’s NU Talent Connect Success Tips Coaching Lab, other related programs, and the Talent Connect webpage to learn tips for success.
  2. Plan ahead! Be sure to have your proper business attire ready to wear for NU Talent Connect.
  3. Review the list of employers attending NU Talent Connect. You will be able to Research each company and the opportunities they are recruiting for and filter by skills, location, and CPT/OPT.
  4. Employers post jobs and internships in NUworks. Research these opportunities to see if your skills and experience match the qualifications they are seeking. If the jobs are not listed in NUworks, go to the employer website and look for the “Careers” section. In order to maximize your success, if your skills and experience do not match well to the job description, focus your efforts on matching your skills and experience to job descriptions that could be a better fit.
  5. Research employers’ websites to learn what the company does, where it does business, what its mission is, and something unique that interests you about the company. Be prepared to answer, “why do you want to work for this company”?
  6. Create a target list of employers. Identify employers that match your interests and goals and be prepared to discuss how your skills and experience match the skills and experience (job description) that the employer is looking for.
  7. Make a plan to speak with the employers on your target list. Stay up to date with NUworks, be sure to check it before attending NU Talent Connect, and map out your strategy ahead of time.

Prepare a short (30 -60 seconds) “professional introduction” to share with employers when you meet them.

My name is ________ (your name), and I am a (senior, Masters student, sophomore) in ___________(field/major). I will graduate in___________. I am interested in the _____________(co-op? full time?) _______________ (position title) position at ____________ (company name). I have the _____________ skills and experience that the job posting describes. _________ (the company name) interests me because__________________.

ADD something about yourself that is positive and memorable:

My last employer said ________________. I am ___________________.

Click here for additional Professional Introduction information and another sample professional introduction.

Talent Connect FAQ’s

How can I search employers or see who is attending Talent Connect?

Students can see registered employers attending Talent Connect before you register for that event.  You can begin researching the companies immediately after a company has registered.

Log into your NUworks account. Navigate to EVENTS>Ask a Recruiter. Click the Employer tab to view a list of employers. You can search this list by company name and the types of recruiting the employer is doing at Talent Connect, including filtering by skills, location, and CPT/OPT. You can also view organizations attending Talent Connect on the Talent Connect Career Design website or in our events listing.

Employer sessions are grouped by day and industry (STEM, Healthcare, Business, Social Impact/Arts/Media). From the list of employers, click on the RSVP button of any employers you are interested in.

How should I upload my resume to NUworks for Talent Connect?

Here it’s all about the default resume.  Your Academic Profile should state your preferred job type and function; co-op, internship or full time, and industry.

For the Default Resume:

Go to Documents on the left side to upload your recent resume.

Click the Add New button.

Enter a name in the Label field and keep Resume selected as the Document Type.

Indicate it’s your Default Resume.

This would be very good to do if you want to leverage the events

This will let the company see your resume before or after the session as they wish.

Be sure to include your resume in their Resume Books.

In Privacy Settings, choose Yes to Include (your resume) in Resume Books so employers can include you in their Resume Book of students interested in their organization.  Choose Yes for Promote Me to Employers.

Be sure to have uploaded a resume and have checked a resume as your Default Resume. This is the resume prospective employers will see. No need to tailor your resume for every employer. There are over 100 employer sessions happening.

When the organization views your resume, they will also see your name, major/degree, and  graduation date. Be sure to specify which resume is your default resume on NUworks  or they will only see your name, degree/major and graduate date. If you do not select a default resume which you would have uploaded into NUworks  than the employer will not receive your resume when you rsvp to any of the Talent Connect sessions. This would be important to do to leverage the NU Talent Connect events.

What should I do if there are multiple Ask a Recruiter sessions happening at the same time?

We understand that there may be a time conflict with a class and that you may not be able to attend all the sessions you hope to attend. We recommend that you still sign up for sessions even if you have a time conflict and can’t make the session. This is because this still helps the employer to see your interest. In addition, they also can see that you have applied to a role and have your resume uploaded. Of course, if you can attend the session, even for a brief time, this is preferred and allows you to meet the organization’s recruiter and have a conversation which facilitates a stronger introduction.

Do I have to attend and stay for the entire Ask a Recruiter session?

Some sessions may be scheduled for 1-2 hours. Do not attend the whole time. Do drop in, have a professional conversation and take advantage of the opportunity to have that time with a prospective employer to ask questions. It’s meant to be more interactive and an open forum where you can have an open dialogue with employers.

What do I do or who do I contact if I am experiencing technical difficulties before an Ask a Recruiter session?

Reach out to Career Design by emailing us at [email protected] for assistance.

How do I get help preparing for Talent Connect?

Attend any of Career Design’s recurring weekly coaching labs on resumes, LinkedIn branding, networking, interviewing, and other relevant topics. Check out the schedule and descriptions.

There will also be Talent Connect Success Tips workshops each semester And you can always drop into the Career Studio with questions. Please visit this link to find schedules and additional details for each of the drop-ins. Visit our website to learn about additional Career Design services available to you.

How do I get help on the day of a Talent Connect Session?

  • The Career Studio is open for drop-in advising if you have questions that arise during Talent Connect preparations.
  • If you have any questions or need assistance with any Northeastern Hiring events, please contact Career Design at 617-373-2430 or [email protected].

How Do I Follow Up After Talent Connect?

Follow-up is critical. Don’t lose whatever momentum may have been gained from your chat with an employer! Follow up within a 24-48 hour period to thank the recruiter for their time. The contact information provided to you by the employer during the session will help direct your thank you note to the right person.

Most thank you notes are sent by email, but mailing handwritten notes or letters on stationery can also be a nice touch. Either way, thank the employer and reiterate why you would be a good match for whatever position you are most interested in. Include specific details from your conversation to set your note apart. For instance, “You mentioned that you really like the city of Chicago, and I completely agree — I would love to live there and to work for your company (mention it by name)!”

Keep track of all of the companies you met with and what was discussed—doing so immediately after each encounter helps capture details while they are fresh in your mind. Hiring events can be very busy and filled with many conversations. The more your notes can help refresh your memory, the better.

Remember: the company representative met with many people; your note may only be the second time they interact with you.  Present yourself professionally; show you can add value to the company, and remind the recruiter of the great interaction you had! What did the employer say they were looking for and how are you a potential fit? Remind them what they liked about you and why you are suitable to fill the need that they identified. Also, try connecting with a mission statement or stated purpose of their company. If their company says that their mission is to send people to Mars and perform research to accomplish this goal, emphasize how much you care about the goal of space exploration and emphasize how that goal matters to you. The more you show that you are a good fit for their company, the more likely they will consider interviewing and hiring you.

Additional Information for International Students

  • NU Talent Connect in the U.S. offer excellent opportunities to talk with prospective employers and ask questions about positions which are posted on NUworks, positions you’ve heard about through networking, positions which have not been posted yet but might become available in the future, and positions posted on other platforms. You can ask questions that help you to determine if you’d be a good candidate with your skills and experience, ask for advice on what you can do to better position yourself for the future, and receive advice about the application and interview process.
  • Create a target list of employers, and be prepared to discuss how your skills and experience match the skills and experience (job description) that the employer is looking for.
  • Talent Connect does not offer or schedule interviews at the event. The goal is to talk with the prospective employer for a few minutes, introduce yourself, and have a short conversation driven by your goal to ask questions and learn more about an opportunity or selection process. After Talent Connect, employers will follow-up with students they chose for an interview.
  • Research your first choice companies and review the positions posted.
  • Don’t ask about CPT/OPT/ H-1B’s or visa assistance. Organizations first need to see that you may be a good candidate and to do this they need to learn about your skills, experience, and potential fit with the job and organization. Bringing up your visa needs too early is not a good idea- it may look efficient, but it’s rarely effective as they do not know at that time whether you would be a good fit for their open position. Use myvisajobs or GoinGlobal to identify which organizations have hired candidates in the past.
  • Talent Connect publishes which organizations are open to CPT/OPT, please note these and explore these organizations for roles that might be a fit for you.
  • Attend the International Student Job Search coaching lab and other coaching labs or Talent Connect programs.
  • While we recommend you not bring up your visa status at a Talent Connect session, if you are asked about employment eligibility be sure to have an answer you’ve practiced that is easy to understand.
  • Visit the Career Studio to customize your strategy and practice your introduction.