Latest / Black Box Theory Podcast / Why Showing Up In Person Still Wins
Transcript
- Malcolm: Brownton, like people really like like people really sleep on ANT, bro. It's like it's one thing. I didn't I when I didn't because when I first heard it, I didn't believe it. But it's one, like when I heard, when first someone, I think I forgot who told me, it was one of our, it was someone. It was someone one of the professors, some one of our professors, but they was like, Yeah, I don't know if you guys know this, but like ANT has the largest, not just in North Carolina, ANT has the largest career fair on the East Coast. On the and I was like, I was like, nah, yeah, I can't. I Wesley Grammer: On the east coast. Literally. Literally. Malcolm: was like, I was like, wait, I was like, wait, wait, because I brought 'cause I went to our career fair and I'm like, I was looking, I like, damn, like, all right, like this is pretty deep. But it didn't, it never like occurred to me until I actually started like talking to people from other schools. I'm talking like I know like I'll say I even reached, like I said, I got my I got people that like even in North Carolina, I got people at NC State, at Duke, like at schools that are like widely regarded from like the naked eye, considered like just flat out, like way more prestigious and a better institution than us. But it's like when you took career Wesley Grammer: Yeah. Malcolm: fairs, like art, we fill out an entire gymnasium, an entire alumni foundation, an entire Coliseum, they'd be like, Yeah, bro, like it'd be like three companies there, bro. I'm Like that's so Wesley Grammer: Tell me. Malcolm: like mind boggling to me. And it's like the only thing I can think of, I think the only thing I can think of, like and it's like like to like kind of like under s like wrap my head around that, I would like to think that more of those students that go to those more prestigious or I guess like what more I guess accredited schools. I think that they get more of their opportunities like in the the pool when they actually apply to something online. Like I think like like from a recruiter Wesley Grammer: You know. Malcolm: standpoint, like it's a difference. Like we have the career fair advantage, like where it's like in person, you can actually connect with me and understand like what I can bring to the table. But think like those other schools, like if you're applying to the same company and you're a recruiter on the back end, you're going through resumes and you're going through experiences and you see like a okay, now you see now you see like the Dukes, the MITs, the Stanfords, the Princetons. Then you see the ANTs like, okay. I think that's where like that they have their advantages and as far as like name brand, as far as like when it's like Wesley Grammer: Yeah. Malcolm: when it's like there is no no face to kind of like attach to the the resume. Or you're looking at it as like, okay, like you come from this school. And so I'll pitch you against like these, these other competitors. Like those like I think that's where they have their advantage at. But still, I feel like that's that's why I said my original point. I was like, it's up to you to take advantage of those in-person opportunities and the opportunities that ANT subs in your face. Cause like unfortunately, even though I think you know, we all can obviously speak to it, like ANT doesn't have the respect it deserves when it comes to like, you know, people that haven't heard of us, like to the naked eye, like you know, people always want to pick the the more prestigious institutions over us. when it comes to picking like internships or or fellowships or co ops or full time jobs. So it's like we got to get what we can when we have the opportunity to because like more nine times out of ten when we're just like bidding we're just a faceless person in a pool of applicants, we're always gonna be the last pick, bro. So it's like you gotta make yourself the first pick when you in personal people when you have the opportunity to kinda like control that destiny and that fate. Thomas: That's facts. I I I just wanna add I seen that like that that's facts for sure. Seen that at Apple, Microsoft, like going Malcolm: I'm telling you. Thomas: there, people from Harvey Mudd, Carnegie Mellon, Penn, like Harvard, like water the loo like people from all these big schools. Malcolm: Waterloo, Georgia, yeah, bro. Then I go lie. That's where the crack everybody, bro. It'd be some yeah, it'd be some schools like it's very obvious. Like like the that's it's like the the most cracked dudes, bruh, either from Waterloo, Georgia Tech, Carnegie, Stanford. Like it'd be it's a pool of schools you already know, like all right, I got it, bro. Like like like like you got it. Thomas: Yeah, Waterloo Wesley Grammer: No for him. Yeah. Thomas: is notorious. Malcolm: Bro, like everybody bro, it comes Wesley Grammer: For sure. Malcolm: straight from there. Thomas: But it's like the people from HBCU's, which are extremely qualified, you know, typically get in through those in-person interactions. So moral of the story, take advantage Malcolm: Or yeah. Thomas: of the programs available to you, especially nowadays, with some of the the political actions taking place, going against you directly. I'm seeing people's programs getting canceled, people gotta leave school, like. Take advantage of what's there, use your network, use your community, because especially if you attend a university that is disrespected at an international level, or if you are from a ethnic background that is disrespected at an international level, you you all you really have is your community. And unfortunately it doesn't go as high up the chain for in a lot of industries as we would like, but you got to use what you can to help pull people up and keep moving forward. Wesley Grammer: Sure.