Application, Interview, and Hiring Process

Standard Processes

Knowing how companies actually recruit helps you prepare for each step and present yourself at your best. This page walks through the recruitment process from the employer's side, then shows you how to stand out once you are in it.  Most hiring moves through four stages. Knowing them helps you prepare for what comes next. Click here to learn more about the application, interview, and hiring process.

1. Needs assessment and marketing. A company identifies a need and posts the role. Get ahead: get in front of recruiters early through LinkedIn and hiring events.
2. Applications and screening. HR reviews applicants against the minimum qualifications and decides who advances. Get ahead: tailor your resume to the role and be ready for a quick phone or virtual screen.
3. Interviews and decisions. Employers run behavioral, technical, or case interviews, then notify candidates. Get ahead: learn the company's interview style on its website or Glassdoor. Many firms publish their process, such as EY's 'How We Hire' page.
4. Offers and acceptance. HR extends offers and candidates decide. Get ahead: benchmark your offer and review the details, covered fully in Evaluate and Accept Your Offer.

Timelines Vary by Major and Industry

These four stages stay the same, but how early they start and how they unfold depends heavily on your field. Knowing your industry's norms keeps you from missing a recruiting window.

• Finance and accounting recruit on the earliest, most structured timelines. Investment banking and public accounting firms often fill summer internships a year or more in advance through fall on-campus recruiting, and lean on technical questions and multi-round interview days.
• Consulting is known for case interviews, where you work through a business problem out loud, and also recruits early through structured cycles.
• Marketing, advertising, and creative roles tend to hire on shorter timelines with rolling deadlines, and they value a portfolio of work and strong networking over a rigid process.
• Technology and analytics roles, including management information systems, often add a skills assessment or technical challenge and recruit closer to the start date.

The takeaway: research your specific industry's hiring calendar early so you are preparing months ahead rather than scrambling once postings appear. Not sure of your field's timeline? The CCD can help you map it out.

Stand Out Among the Competition

Once you are in the process, small choices set you apart. Here is what employers are looking for, from two perspectives.

From the Recruiter's Perspective

• Proofread. Double check that all of your professional documents and online profiles are updated and professional.
• Research, research, research. Know the company and the role inside and out.
• Define your personal brand. Be ready to articulate your "why" and how you can contribute to the organization.
• Be responsive, flexible, and transparent. Meet every deadline and treat each interaction with equal importance.

From the Hiring Manager's Perspective

• Be engaged. Sit up, make eye contact, and show genuine interest in the role and the company.
• Ask tailored questions. As you research the company, jot down ideas for questions to ask the employer.
• Be honest. If you do not know something, it is okay to say so and add that you would like to learn.
• Be passionate. Find something you love about the work and run with it.

What to Wear

How you present yourself matters before you say a word.

• Research the company's dress code, then take it up a few notches.
• When in doubt, err on the side of professional.
• Most employers expect a suit, even in a virtual environment.