"I was really nervous beforehand and was afraid of doing something wrong. But as the interview progressed, I became more and more confident and noticed how my interviewer also relaxed. In hindsight, it was a really great experience and a good insight into the everyday life of a recruiter."
The company day, a joint project between the Friedrich-Magnus-Schwerd-Gymnasium, the Ludwigshafen University of Business and Society and 9 companies from Speyer, took place for the 16th time last Thursday. Lecturer Heinz Michael Hartmann and Prof. Dr. Stephan Weinert were responsible for the organization and content preparation of the students from the university.
The aim was to give the Year 12 pupils from the grammar school an insight into the respective companies and to prepare them for future applications by simulating job interviews and providing feedback on the interviews and application documents.
The pupils and students from the fourth semester of International Personnel Management and Organization (IPO) were divided up among the various companies in advance. This year, the following companies took part in the company day: Diakonissen Speyer, Deutsche Rentenversicherung, Lidl, PFW Aerospace GmbH, Polizei RLP, SH Computersysteme GmbH, Sparkasse Vorderpfalz, Stadtverwaltung Speyer and Volksbank Kur- und Rheinpfalz.
On the company day, all participants met in the town hall in Speyer. After a short presentation by Prof. Dr. Weinert on career opportunities and prospects after graduating from high school, around ten pupils and four students made their way to the individual companies. There they were given information about the companies and their career opportunities and, over the course of the day, each student had a simulated interview for an apprenticeship or dual study program within the company.
The interviews were conducted by HWG Ludwigshafen students, some of whom were given the opportunity to plan and conduct a job interview themselves for the first time. They had been sent the application documents of the high school graduates in advance and were therefore well prepared to ask specific questions. After the interview, the students gave the applicants feedback on their documents and their interview. The students also received feedback on the interview from company representatives who took part as observers.
On the evening of the company day, some pupils, students, company representatives and those responsible met again for a debriefing in a relaxed atmosphere in a beer garden. The students emphasized how helpful the simulated job interview and the review of their documents was. Many had never taken part in a job interview before and, according to them, were able to learn a lot and overcome their fear of future job interviews. There was also consistently good feedback from the students. They were able to apply what they had learned from their studies in practice and make new contacts.
We would like to thank all participants for an exciting experience and look forward to the Company Day 2020!