Interviewing: Perspective From Both Sides of the Table

Effective Job Interviewing From Both Sides of the Desk

View more documents from Andy Lester.

 I'm lucky to have been both an interviewee and an interviewer at some point in my career, so I understand how both "sides of the table" are feeling during an interview.

Rather than try to capture those thoughts, feelings and opinions in a lengthy post, I found a perfect presentation on slideshare (it's an awesome website that hosts a library of powerpoint presentations you can view, embed and share) that has helpful information for both the interviewer and interviewee.

Readers - how have your on-campus interviews been? What questions do you have about interviewing? Please comment with your thoughts, stories, tips and tricks.

Twittering With Your Brain: Enabling Technology

The short message from 2nd rotation IMLP Alana Edumunds, "GE IMLP," that appeared on Twitter is not an ordinary message.

The unusual thing about this message is how she wrote it:  with her brain waves.

On July 13th, a group of 5 Schenectady Infra Energy IMLP interns accompanied by their buddy Alana Edmunds and IMLP champion visited the Wadsworth Research Center in Albany, NY to learn about the impressive research going on in the area of developing a brain-computer interface (BCI).

The BCI interface is primarily being built for patients suffering from amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), a disabling condition created by brain-stem stroke or spinal-cord injury. People with these disorders gradually lose their ability to use their muscles and therefore lose their capability to communicate with the outside world by speaking, nodding, or even with eye movement.

For almost 20 years, researchers at the Wadsworth Center have been developing a BCI system to help such paralyzed people communicate and hence lead productive and fulfilling lives.

Gerwin Schalk, chief software engineer of the Wadsworth BCI project was our tour guide. He started the tour by explaining how the BCI system records the brain's electrical activity. First, he showed us a swimming cap with a series of electrodes fitted to record Electrophysiological signals (EEG signals) from the scalp, and then explained the process of recording these signals.

To actually type via brainwaves, a user watches a computer screen that displays a flashing matrix of letters that correspond to the keys of a standard computer keyboard. To type, the user must focus on the next letter of the word he or she wishes to spell and when that particular letter flashes, the user must convey this selection message to the brain in some way - which could be thinking"that's it," or tapping a finger.

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All Intern Career Fair: Schenectady Edition

Schenectady Area Interns Gather for Annual EventThursday, June 25th marked GE Energy Infrastructure’s 4th annual Intern Networking Event and Career Fair.

The events is an opportunity for Schenectady-area interns interested in GE’s leadership programs to meet one another, interact with program representatives, and gain advice on career selection.

Over 125 interns and representatives from 14 leadership and affinity programs from throughout the capital district filled a conference room in  Schenectady for the event, which featured a keynote address by the CIO of GE Power and Water, an ice cream social, and the opportunity to interact with leadership program representatives from across the business.

The presentation covered GE career paths and gave an overview of the Power & Water business - from the new Wind building in Schenectady to how government regulation changes have impacted our products. The message left the crowd feeling that it's an exciting time to be at Energy.

Many interns commented that the GE career path overview reassured the audience that what you studied in college won't hold you back at GE.

After the presentation, Interns were invited to visit booths during the career fair segment, which gave area EIDs time to ask questions directly to leadership.

One an EID intern located in Schenectady, said that she appreciated the chance to mingle with program leaders and some of her fellow interns. “I enjoyed being able to talk to people from different parts of GE Energy and from the various programs that [the company] offers,” she said.

Programs and Affinity Groups represented at the event included: IMLP, FMP, OMLP, CLP, EEDP, African-American Forum (AAF), Asian-Pacific American Forum(APAF), GE Women’s Network (GEWN), Hispanic Forum (HF), and the Gay, Lesbian, Transgender, and Ally Alliance (GLBTA).

The annual intern networking event and career fair began four years ago and has been organized and managed each year by an IMLP intern supervised by Susan Kudlack, IMLP Site Representative, and Schenectady IMLPs.

Welcome IMLP Interns!

Welcome to GE!It's that time of the year again, where students at colleges and universities across the country (and globe!) are studying for finals and gearing up for summer.

For those of you who are headed to GE for a summer internship or co-op, congratulations and welcome!

Whether you have internship plans as an early identification candidate for the Information Management Leadership Program (IMLP), Financial Management Program (FMP), Human Resources, Communications, or one of our Engineering Leadership Development Programs, the IMLP Blog Team wishes you the best this summer.

For those of you who are interested in an internship with GE, the company offers opportunities for both undergraduate and graduate students during the summer and school terms.

Year after year, GE's internship programs are consistently ranked well by a variety of sources, including:

• Business Week's 50 Best Internships: Ranked GE's internship programs #6 in 2008.


• Business Week's Best Places to Launch a Career:  Added GE to it's list


• EduChoices.org: Ranked GE's Internship Programs in the top 5.

For more information on internships and co-ops offered by GE, please visit the GE Careers website.