So I just got my college degree in August 2015 and it’s now a month of me being out of school. I’ve been looking for post graduation career-based jobs since July 2015, while I was in NYC. However, the job market is pretty unfair. The industry I want to work in has an extremely tiny market in Detroit. And honestly just want to move to NYC or even LA to find a job in editorial. Both places are expensive and after spending an entire summer in NYC for an unpaid internship…I’m obviously very broke.
Everyday I feel like Im doing something wrong because I really haven’t been able to find anything for a full-time job. But, ehh I know that if I keep working hard I will find something that I love to do.
So until I can find something I love and full time. I’ve been applying for part-time retail jobs. As you may know, I love fashion and beauty. Hence this blog…So I looked for positions that would fit my interests. I knew right away the two places I wanted to work. Sephora and H&M.
I applied to both simultaneously. I got a call from Sephora literally 20 minutes after I submitted the application. Lol. It was a super surprising because I didn’t expect to hear back for at least as week or so. Nevertheless, I got the call and scheduled the interview! The interview was scheduled for a few days after (about 4) the initial call. I couldn’t tell you how nervous I was. Usually Im pretty relaxed but Sephora seemed extremely intimidating. Whenever I visit the Sephora store, the employees are a lot older than my age group.
Since I am obsessed with YouTube, I watched vlogs about Sephora interviews from people who actually got the jobs they applied for. Terrible idea, it just made me more nervous and anxious.
So I went into the interview and just hoped my smile and personality would help me through it.
During the interview, I was asked questions like “What do you know about Sephora?”, “Why do you want to work at Sephora?” “Why would you make a good fit?” Basic interview questions. After that she asked me if I was hired, how many hours would I expect to work? This is when I thought I failed the interview.
I was so optimistic that I would just work all that I wanted to. Lol. But this position was for a seasonal position. I answered, “I would love to work full time if possible but I think the least I would want to work is 20 hours.”
She nicely replied, “Well…honestly if you got the job you would more so work 10 hours a week at the most. So you would need to reconsider that if I were to offer you a position.” However, I want the experience of working in the beauty industry. I’ve seen corporate writing,media jobs at Sephora and I would love to do that ultimately one day. So a few weeks later I was offered the part time seasonal job at Sephora! –Given there’s always the opportunity of being offered a permanent position.
Luckily, I applied to H&M as well and got the interview for a permanent part-time position at the same mall as Sephora.
The H&M interview went so well. I literally knew after I was done that I was going to get the job. After they did the standard background check I was called in for a second interview. The second interview was more of a conversation about my first interview and mostly importantly—The Job Offer.
So currently I am employed at Sephora and H&M. And while it is not a full time job in my “field” it is something that I am extremely interested in. I can’t wait to keep updating you all on my career paths. I know it’ll be a long fun exciting journey.