You’re a college student looking for an internship or full time job, and have landed a second round on-site interview. What do you pack?

This question may seem like a simple one, but trust me, if you forget something, you’ll be prone to hit the panic button way too soon, just like I did on one trip!

I hit the panic button when I forgot a belt on my first second round interview.  Seems easy to do, and really wasn’t a big deal since my suit fit pretty well (luckily my pants weren’t falling down!), but it threw me off just a little bit throughout the morning, as I wondered “Do they notice I’m not wearing a belt?” “What are they thinking – that I can’t even think to dress myself properly?”

In the end, I was successful in getting an offer, but I still wonder – what if I had forgotten something more important?  Like a tie…  Like my travel information… Or, what if my suit didn’t fit me and my pants ended up falling down all the time?  Any of those would be horrible experiences to have to go through, and I don’t want them to happen to you!

Here is a simple list for you to use in your travels on second round interviews:

Logistics
            Travel information – Airplane times, ground transportation, hotel, etc.
            Schedule of events for the trip (if available)
            Your recruiter’s phone number

Misc
            Company information for your review the night before
            Personal Organizer (leather-bound folder, if you have one)
            Five (at least) printed copies of your resume
            One official and one non-official transcript
            Company Application filled out beforehand (if instructed to do so)
            Personal Computer (with backups of logistics and contact info)
            Homework
            Cell Phone
            Job Search Guide for your review!

Women
            Suit
            Dress shirts
            Belt
            Dress shoes
            Dress socks
            Respectable semi-casual clothing
            Anything else you feel necessary

Men
            Ties
            Suit
            Button-down shirts
            Undershirts
            Belt
            Dress shoes
            Dress socks
            Shaving kit
            Respectable semi-casual clothing
            Anything else you feel necessary

Make sure you consider how long the interview process will last -- if it is only for one day, then only bring what you need: one tie, one suit, one shirt, etc. If it's for multiple days, then I would strongly urge you to bring more than one shirt, tie, and maybe even more than one suit if your luggage can fit it. Don't go in with the same outfit you wore the day before.

Additionally, there will likely be events during the process where you will be expected to not wear your formal clothing. For these, you will want a respectable polo shirt or button-down, khakis or slacks, etc. Don't even think about going to these events wearing your favorite Hollister shirt that has a hole in it!

I’m not going to list personal items you can choose to bring; you should know what these are without me going into it.

The last thing I want to mention is that most hotels have certain things available to you if you forget to bring them on your own.  This includes razors, shaving cream, deodorant, hair gel, shampoo, soap, laundry service, irons, etc.  I definitely used those services too!

Feel free to explore the other articles on the website to get more in depth information about each one, or purchase our complete Job Search Guide!

Happy (Job) Hunting!

Thanks again for your interest in College-Career-Builder.com


E-Mail: coachbob@college-career-builder.com