Experience is an interesting topic because it’s so important but also so subjective. I recently hired an intern, so I have a fresh perspective on experience. In the end, I had two great candidates for the position, but I only had budget for one intern. Looking at their resumes, both students had vastly different experience levels.

 Going into the interviews, there was a clear front runner in my mind. I interviewed both on the same day with two hours in between the interviews. The first one that I interviewed was the candidate that I was less impressed with on paper. I talked to her for 30 minutes and was blown away with her motivation, passion and eagerness to learn. It was clear that she had done her research on the organization and on myself, and where her past work had not shown a lot of relevant experience, it painted a picture of a person who was willing to put in the hard work to do a job right.

My next candidate arrived on time for her interview and we sat down to chat about her experience. On paper, this girl was everything I was looking for in an intern. She had worked in events previously with a diverse portfolio of several different types of events. She was also interested in the industry as a whole for a future career. Immediately after my first interview, I thought this girl would make my decision very difficult. That wasn’t necessarily the case. She was polar opposite to my first interview. Quiet, reserved and somewhat uninterested in what we as an organization were doing. As we got more into her work experience she was more outspoken and inspired, but overall her personality wasn’t what I was looking for.

This left me with a tough decision, because I knew the first girl would require more training, but I also knew how important it was for me to get along with this person since we would be spending several months working together. Ultimately, I chose the first candidate. She followed up with a lovely thank you email that talked about why she was excited about the position and the organization and thanked me for the opportunity. This was when I knew I made the right decision.

When looking for a job, experience is important, but what generally outshines your experience is your personality and your willingness to learn and grow. Looking back, I do not believe I was qualified for the position I currently have. My organization took a chance on me because they knew I was extremely driven. Initially, my work felt a little bit like a trial by fire, but now one year later, I have built the entire program and have started to add to my team.

If I had to give one piece of advice to students looking for admittance in college, internships or jobs, it would be, don’t obsess over your experience. Get your foot in the door and show them that you are willing to put in the work to be successful. Ultimately this will go a lot further than your background on paper.

-       Bria