I recently caught up with Amine Qourzal to chat about all things career development within Baylor’s Full-Time MBA. Qourzal, a Baylor MBA alum, is an assistant director for the Career Center and works specifically with Graduate Business students here at Baylor.

I’d like to share a few points that came out of that conversation to answer incoming students’ question, “Just what exactly does the Career Center do for MBA students?” We’ll learn about how students can begin early on to prepare for interviews and internships and what all the Career Center team does to help you land that coveted job offer!

Here are a few highlights from our conversation together:

Connor Griffin: As a Baylor MBA student, what resources would the Career Center provide?

Amine Qourzal: The Graduate Business Team of the Baylor Career Center is a full-service, one-stop resource for all our students to get the career support they need. In addition to providing a host of tailored career services, our relational-based coaching allows us to know our students’ career aspirations very well and as a result, become true partners with them on their career development journey. Some of the services we offer include:

• One-on-one career coaching
• Résumé writing and review
• Career discovery and exploration
• Interview preparation
• Personal branding and networking
• Job offer/salary/benefits negotiation
• Experience gap analysis
• Job market trends and industry analysis
• Career discovery
• How to develop emotional intelligence
• Networking assistance
• Developing a personal brand
• Alumni career panels with industry experts
• Job interview skills training

CG: A career development class is built into the Full-Time MBA’s curriculum. How does that class contribute to my acquiring internships and job offers?

AQ: We thrive on the ability to coach our students on the tools they need for career success. It’s one thing to be handed a job, but another thing altogether to be taught how to get a job. The skills we impart are those that can be used for the career journey long after the MBA. We teach two 5,000-level career classes that are specifically designed for our MBAs.

The best thing to do is get engaged early and keep the job/internship search front and center. 

We also host two university-wide career fairs per academic year and numerous on-campus interviews through our employer partnerships. Our career fairs average over 100 employers in attendance. We also partner with the National Black MBA Association and Prospanica for recruiting our MBAs on a national level. We have recently partnered with Baylor MBA chapters in Houston and Austin to add additional networking events to our popular Leadership Summit traditionally held annually in New York City. All of these opportunities give students the chance to network with industry professionals across a wide variety of industries, job functions, geographies, and types of organizations.

CG: What’s the best thing an incoming student can do to prepare for the internship hunt?

AQ: I encourage incoming students to invest in their career search early by getting to know the career center and building their list of professional contacts. Career success starts on day one. With all the activities and busyness of the MBA program, it’s easy to put career efforts on the back burner. The best thing to do is get engaged early and keep the job/internship search front and center. Incoming students are able to schedule their first appointment with the Career Center as soon as they’re admitted into the program; even months before actually starting the program. 

CG: What are the top three things recruiters are looking for in candidates?

AQ:

1. High level of Emotional Intelligence: the ability for one to be self-aware and to manage and express emotions in a professional manner that allows candidates to solve problems compassionately.
2. Effective Communication: strong oral and written communications are essential to a good hire.
3. Leadership Skills: the ability to lead others with improved productivity and workflow towards a common goal.

CG: What’s the best advice you would give students regarding networking?

AQ: Make a friend everywhere you go. Make an effort to reach out. It only takes one connection, one conversation, or one relationship to land you that dream job or internship. Don’t be afraid to connect with someone new by introducing yourself and showcasing your personality. Even if the connection is in an industry outside of your interest, it could be the spark that ignites a new career path that you would otherwise never have even considered. I encourage all students to develop a strong elevator pitch (a short introduction focusing on skills and interests) and use it everywhere they go.

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Want more? Check out this short video in which Amine connects with Baylor Full-Time MBA’s Assistant Director of Admissions Scot Sanders to chat a bit more about the true partnership between the Baylor Career Center and the MBA program. 

Connor Griffin is a dual-vocation alum of both Baylor’s Full-Time MBA and Baylor’s Truett Seminary where he earned an MDiv. Griffin currently serves in a senior pastoral role at Ecclesia Community Church in Waco, TX while also assisting in the daily operations as a co-owner of a commercial janitorial company. Griffin also served in a lead Ambassador role while in the MBA program.