HBS Offers Web Job Help

Harvard Business School (HBS) students can now schedule job interviews over the World Wide Web, thanks to a new service offered by the school's MBA Career Services.

Kirsten J. Moss '86, the director of MBA recruiting, said the on-line sign-up system began this week.

She said the web-based system also includes an on-line job bank.

Last September, Harvard College's Office of Career Services (OCS) introduced an on-line application system for the recruiting process but was forced to discontinue the system after two weeks due to student discontent.

"The students were not able to use it as easily as we would have liked," OCS Recruiting Director Judith C. Murray told the Crimson last year.

Students expressed concern that a paperless application process would put Harvard students at a disadvantage, as it is easier to read a paper resume than one online.

However, Moss said the new system at HBS will not have this last problem, as it does not allow on-line resume submissions.

In fact, Moss said students must mail their resumes to firms and then await the responses. Once students are accepted, they can then use the on-line system to schedule interviews, she said.

In some cases, interviews may even be scheduled with no prior application, Moss said. These interviews are first-come, first-serve and are not awarded on merit.

Furthermore, Moss said the new system is user-friendly. "This was developed with a lot of focus groups," she said. "We started building this three years ago."

No users have complained about problems with the system thus far. In any case, Moss said students may still schedule appointments by hand in the office. But she quickly added that she couldn't imagine why anyone would want to do that.