Increasingly, applicants to universities, graduate schools, summer programs, scholarships, honor societies, and everything from a local part-time coffee shop job to a global business career are being asked the same question: tell me about your travel experiences.
This question can stump quite a few of us-- even for people who have traveled, it can catch you off guard and seem like something that has little to do with your qualifications-- reductive, even. Why, if I'm suited for the position, do I need to have been to Africa and to have had some certain reaction to my experience?
The question's legitimacy, however, lies in its relationship with the increasing demand for workers who are not just trained in a skill, but who are trained to learn skills. A good friend of mine was recently laid off when her computer support company downsized-- it was six months before she found another job even tangentially related to her area of work that would deign to employ a fifty-year-old woman when they have scores of fresh technology school graduates to choose from every year. She was trained in a certain technology skill set, and the systems that she operates have already moved out of style-- and what's worse, the new tech grads who were hired in her place and dozens of other support companies have also been trained in a certain skill set, and theirs, too, will go out of style. This is why in many sectors of business and government, employers seek out people who have one crucial ability-- the ability to learn whatever new skills they need.
Of course, the fact that I have been told this information is due largely to the fact that I both majored in the liberal arts and worked in a university Career Center-- perhaps it's just a myth that the career consultant part of me tells my English major part. But I think it seems like a valid story. And a large indicator that you have the ability to adapt to new skills is that you have the ability (and willingness) to adapt to new geographical and cultural surroundings. It's a simple test: if you traveled abroad for a relatively significant amount of time with fairly innocuous motives and survived without a chip on your shoulder, you seem like a decent person who can survive this job (even if it has nothing to do with travel or the kind of experience you have).
So much the better for those of us who have travel experience, but you experience so much traveling abroad, how can you know what you might expect in a job interview?
-Job interview questions (and sometimes college or scholarship essays) tend to be behavioral in nature-- they will ask you to demonstrate some aspect of your past behavior, for example, "Tell me about a time when you had to resolve a conflict," or even something that seems unproductive, like "Tell me about a time when you set a goal and failed to meet it." These questions may specifically reference travel, but even if they don't, a travel experience is usually a good pick.
But what if you've always wanted to travel and never had the time or money-- why should you be penalized for that?
-Obviously, you shouldn't. But, like in any job interview tight spot, try to put a positive spin and to always mention your strengths. If an interviewer specifically asks you about travel, mention that you have always wanted to travel-- be specific about what you've wanted to do and why-- and explain what has held you back. Have you been concentrating on getting multiple degrees, busy working to pay your own way through college, or having to care for a family member? Illustrate that you are a responsible person with concrete goals, and your interviewer will be able to see that, like a traveler, you have had to adapt your life to meed unexpected obstacles to your travel dreams.
The important thing is that you never lose track of the travel experiences you've had and the experiences that you would like to have-- both are equally valuable as proof of your value as a person who seeks to engage with the world, change it, and be changed-- whether you're around the office or around the world.
This question can stump quite a few of us-- even for people who have traveled, it can catch you off guard and seem like something that has little to do with your qualifications-- reductive, even. Why, if I'm suited for the position, do I need to have been to Africa and to have had some certain reaction to my experience?
The question's legitimacy, however, lies in its relationship with the increasing demand for workers who are not just trained in a skill, but who are trained to learn skills. A good friend of mine was recently laid off when her computer support company downsized-- it was six months before she found another job even tangentially related to her area of work that would deign to employ a fifty-year-old woman when they have scores of fresh technology school graduates to choose from every year. She was trained in a certain technology skill set, and the systems that she operates have already moved out of style-- and what's worse, the new tech grads who were hired in her place and dozens of other support companies have also been trained in a certain skill set, and theirs, too, will go out of style. This is why in many sectors of business and government, employers seek out people who have one crucial ability-- the ability to learn whatever new skills they need.
Of course, the fact that I have been told this information is due largely to the fact that I both majored in the liberal arts and worked in a university Career Center-- perhaps it's just a myth that the career consultant part of me tells my English major part. But I think it seems like a valid story. And a large indicator that you have the ability to adapt to new skills is that you have the ability (and willingness) to adapt to new geographical and cultural surroundings. It's a simple test: if you traveled abroad for a relatively significant amount of time with fairly innocuous motives and survived without a chip on your shoulder, you seem like a decent person who can survive this job (even if it has nothing to do with travel or the kind of experience you have).
So much the better for those of us who have travel experience, but you experience so much traveling abroad, how can you know what you might expect in a job interview?
-Job interview questions (and sometimes college or scholarship essays) tend to be behavioral in nature-- they will ask you to demonstrate some aspect of your past behavior, for example, "Tell me about a time when you had to resolve a conflict," or even something that seems unproductive, like "Tell me about a time when you set a goal and failed to meet it." These questions may specifically reference travel, but even if they don't, a travel experience is usually a good pick.
But what if you've always wanted to travel and never had the time or money-- why should you be penalized for that?
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-Obviously, you shouldn't. But, like in any job interview tight spot, try to put a positive spin and to always mention your strengths. If an interviewer specifically asks you about travel, mention that you have always wanted to travel-- be specific about what you've wanted to do and why-- and explain what has held you back. Have you been concentrating on getting multiple degrees, busy working to pay your own way through college, or having to care for a family member? Illustrate that you are a responsible person with concrete goals, and your interviewer will be able to see that, like a traveler, you have had to adapt your life to meed unexpected obstacles to your travel dreams.
The important thing is that you never lose track of the travel experiences you've had and the experiences that you would like to have-- both are equally valuable as proof of your value as a person who seeks to engage with the world, change it, and be changed-- whether you're around the office or around the world.