B-School Grads Better at Finding Professional Happiness
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There are many compelling reasons to consider graduate business school: engaging and relevant coursework, peer-to-peer learning, personal growth, and of course increased earning potential, to name a few. But that’s not all in store for business school grads.
You see, business school not only prepares you to become a business leader; experience gained with your degree also prepares you to be happier at work by helping you to find your best fit path for your future career.
Realizing career happiness means finding your purpose
Jenn Lim, co-founder, CEO, and chief happiness officer of Delivering Happiness, a management consulting firm, says that the main driver of employee happiness in the workplace is fit with the company culture or how well your work style meshes into the company’s culture and norms.
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Though many think career happiness means find your passion and make it your career, lasting professional happiness is really about finding your purpose. When your work aligns with your values, it reflects your purpose. Purpose gives you more grit than career passion alone and equips you for long-term career success.
The top factor for companies hiring business school grads: fit with company culture
Companies hiring on business school campuses want candidates who are going to be a good fit for their company cultures. Findings from the Graduate Management Admission Council’s™ (GMAC™) 2019 Corporate Recruiters Survey show that fit with the company culture comes out on top in employers’ ranking of hiring decision factors for business school graduates, topping other factors like fit with the job opening, prior direct experience, and growth potential.
Career happiness is important and being a good fit in your company’s culture supports it. A huge part of the value of graduate business programs is that they provide the tools and resources you need to find your best fit, including personalized counseling with the career services office, on-campus recruitment events and information sessions, and access to your business school’s alumni network.
How personalized counseling helps business school grads find career happiness
Business schools typically have career services offices designed to help you consider where you want to take your career after you graduate. Through one-on-one consultations, their experience and expertise can guide you to opportunities that best align with your goals.
Talking to a career counselor can help you leverage connections with major employers and build on insights into company cultures based on existing relationships and knowledge of successful past graduates. In addition, career services staff can explain the ins and outs of the recruitment and hiring process to help you put your best foot forward.
Find career passion and purpose at corporate recruitment events
Business schools regularly host corporate recruiters on their campuses to interact with students, discuss employment opportunities, and share details about their companies. Making connections with recruiters at these events can give you an inside track in the hiring process. Take time to introduce yourself to the company representatives to start cultivating a relationship. How a recruiter pitches their company at recruitment events or information sessions often provides insight into their company culture and can be useful in determining whether or not it’s a good fit for you.
Find success in business school alumni networks
Being a part of an extensive business school alumni network is an incredibly powerful asset when it comes to identifying best fit job opportunities and landing a position. According to a Graduate Management Admission Council (GMAC) survey, 75 percent of alumni agree that they expanded their professional network through their business school experience, and an overwhelming 95 percent of business school alumni say they would recruit an alum from their program for an open position at their company. Students often work their alumni network and see if there are any alumni who currently or previously worked at companies of interest. Many of them are willing to provide their honest take on organizational culture and may be able to provide insight into how the company finds fit with its culture in the hiring process.
Pursue your professional happiness
Pursuing your professional happiness and getting the best return on your degree investment can be a huge challenge to undertake on your own. The guidance and resources made available to you as a business school student can help you find your purpose—and lead you to true career happiness.
Do you think you’re ready to find your career happiness? Create an mba.com account today.