Over the past week, we heard about the experiences of five different students that attended last years Corporate Tours. These students have given us great insight into the benefits of going on a tour, remarking on the useful business skills and knowledge they gained that has helped them both professionally and academically. For the final day of the Corporate Tour blog series we’ll hear from Casey Gallagher and about her experience on the Toronto Corporate tour. Here’s what she had to say.

“People say the number one way to get an amazing co-op is through connections and the Corporate Tour is the best way to gain these connections.”

Casey Gallagher

(Toronto Corporate Tour)

1. Connections – On the corporate tour you will end the day with a pile of business cards and an entire new network of people.

2. Networking – Before the tour I really didn’t know how to network efficiently. During the 3 days you really learn how to network, and quick. These skills will continue with you for the rest of your lives, I know I have used them in many networking sessions since the tour.

3. The Mock Interview – This is like a dry-run that will only help you – seems too good to be true. My interviewer told me things I did right as well as things I could improve. This helped with my nerves going into interviews this September as well as confidence in my answers.

4. Knowledge of the Industry – During the tour you get to see the inside of all these corporations you have never been inside of. Seeing the dirty work and speaking to real employees could make or break your decision of what you want to go into.

5. Relationships With Your Peers – Even though the days are long on the tour, I got to know my fellow commerce students on a different level and we had a ton of fun.

The Corporate Tours are a great opportunity for students to get ahead. By going to any one of the three tours you will gain valuable networking experience, learn about different industries and how they operate and have a fun and fulfilling time with your peers. Click here to get more information about the Halifax, Toronto, and Calgary Corporate Tours, and visit the myCareer calendar to register to attend today’s (January 27) info sessions. 

For the fifth day of the Corporate Tour blog series, we’ll hear the top five things Katie Robertson had to say about her experience on the Calgary Corporate Tour.

“A great opportunity! A valuable look into potential careers and organizations.”

Katie Robertson

(Calgary Corporate Tour)

1. It’s a great opportunity to connect with Dal alumni and current students you may not have known before. You also hear upper year students and alumni explain their co-op and internship experiences and give you tips on how to ensure a successful work term.

2. You realize the employers are friendly, personable people (not as intimidating as one might think).

3. It opens your eyes to the many careers out there (we visited Aon and I had never thought of insurance before, but was very interesting).

4. Gets you out of your comfort zone and more experience with networking.

5. The tour allows you to network in an environment where the amount of energy, thought and willingness you put in will be accepted and reciprocated by the working professionals.

The Corporate tours are a great opportunity for students to get ahead. By going to any one of the three tours you will gain valuable networking experience, learn about different industries and how they operate and have a fun and fulfilling time with your peers. Click here to get more information about the Halifax, Toronto, and Calgary Corporate Tours, and visit the myCareer calendar to register to attend our upcoming info session on January 27. Check back on Monday for the next installment in our Corporate Tour blog series.

Today, as part of the Corporate Tour blog series, we’ll hear from Ziyang Zhang who went on both the Toronto and Calgary Corporate tours. Here’s what he had to say.

“The Corporate Tour is a great opportunity to gain insight on different industries and network with professionals.”

Ziyang Zhang

(Toronto and Calgary Tour)

1. A chance to make many connections with industry professionals.

2. Opens a window to potential career opportunities.

3. Gives you an internal view and deeper understanding of various industries and companies.

4. Provides you with feedback on your interview skills feedback, allowing you to enhance them through mock interviews with corporate HR representatives.

5. A chance to see more of Canada through potential co-op and internship opportunities; maybe see the Rocky Mountains or Niagara Falls!

The Corporate Tours are a great opportunity for students to get ahead. By going to any one of the three tours you will gain valuable networking experience, learn about different industries and how they operate and have a fun and fulfilling time with your peers. Click here to get more information about the Halifax, Toronto, and Calgary Corporate Tours, and visit the myCareer calendar to register to attend our upcoming info session on January 27. Check back tomorrow for the next installment in our Corporate Tour blog series.

Today as part of the Corporate Tour blog series we hear from Nicole Drozdiak and her experience on the Calgary Corporate Tour.

“A great learning experience with many opportunities for students to practice networking”

Nicole Drozdiak

(Calgary Corporate Tour)

“The Corporate Tour gives you an opportunity to practice your networking skills in one environment, and then move on to a new company where you can improve the questions you asked and correct the mistakes you made an hour ago. The timing really makes a difference because during the tour what you want to improve on is still fresh in your mind as opposed to trying to remember what you did wrong last week or last month. This is an environment where you can make a critical mistake and learn from it without really losing anything at the end of the day.

Another one of my main takeaways from the Corporate Tour was the interview component.  It’s rare that you have any opportunity to conduct an interview with a recruitment specialist, not have an actual job on the line, and have them give you direct feedback on what you can improve on.  It can even turn into a connection to use for job hunting in the future, which it did for me.”

The Corporate Tours are a great opportunity for students to get ahead. By going to any one of the three tours you will gain valuable networking experience, learn about different industries and how they operate and have a fun and fulfilling time with your peers. Click here to get more information about the Halifax, Toronto, and Calgary Corporate Tours, and visit the myCareer calendar to register to attend our upcoming info session on January 27. Check back tomorrow for the next installment in our Corporate Tour blog series.

For the second day of the Corporate Tour blog series, Carolyn Silver gives us  some insight into her experiences on last year’s Halifax Corporate Tour.  To learn more about what it’s like to go on the Halifax Corporate Tour, check out the post that followed the 2013 Tour.

“The corporate tour helped me gain insight on the different types of workplaces and jobs available in the business world. The tour was engaging, with us traveling to a variety of companies, and interacting with employees.”

Carolyn Silver

(Halifax Corporate Tour)

1. Exposure to real workplaces and their environments.

2. An opportunity to ask questions about businesses and work opportunities.

3. A chance to meet other students in your program and build closer bonds with your peers.

4. Make connections and gain valuable information by networking with professionals within several companies.

5. Develop an idea of what kind of businesses you would like to work for by seeing and learning about several different industries and workplaces.

The Corporate tours are a great opportunity for students to get ahead. By going to any one of the three tours you will gain valuable networking experience, learn about different industries and how they operate and have a fun and fulfilling time with your peers. Click here to get more information about the Halifax, Toronto, and Calgary Corporate Tours, and visit the myCareer calendar to register to attend our upcoming info session on January 27. Check back tomorrow for the next installment in our Corporate Tour blog series.

After last year’s extremely successful Corporate Tours, MCS is doing it all again! With tours happening in Halifax, Toronto, and Calgary, students will have the opportunity to see a variety of notable corporate environments, network with professionals, apply their business skills and have a great time! During the tour, students are exposed to real world work places and will learn how different industries operate and function.

We asked some of the students who attended last year’s Corporate Tours what they thought the top benefits of attending were. The result? From today until Monday, Jan. 27, you’ll hear from students just like you who have experienced a tour (or two) first hand and have great insights to share. Today as part of our Corporate Tour blog series, Lauren Eddy shares her thoughts.

“The tour provided a great opportunity to network and meet with people in various industries that could elaborate on their careers and opportunities.”

Lauren Eddy

(Toronto and Calgary Tour)

1. You get immediate feedback from a mock interview with corporate HRs. They will critique your interview techniques and provide advice on how to improve your answers and presentation.

2. The Importance of a Good Elevator Pitch. Once your elevator pitch is perfected, it becomes the answer to the age old question “Tell me about yourself” and you can whip it out almost anywhere.

3. The tour is helpful if you are undecided on what career path you want to follow, or want to make sure the one you chose is the right one for you.

4. The importance of staying connected with your contacts.

5. Great practice for co-op and full-time job searches. Going into the fall recruiting season, I felt that the corporate tour had prepared me for talking to new people and knowing what to do at the various networking sessions held by MCS.

The Corporate Tours are a great opportunity for students to get ahead. By going to any one of the three tours you will gain valuable networking experience, learn about different industries and how they operate and have a fun and fulfilling time with your peers. Get more information about the Halifax, Toronto, and Calgary Corporate Tours on our website, and visit the myCareer event calendar to register to attend our upcoming Info Session on January 27.