22 Buffalo Business Spring 2022
Stepping Up
"Prior to the program, my approach to interviews was
almost like how I might prepare for an exam," says Sydney
Merritt, an accounting senior who won the GEICO Interview
Challenge in fall 2020. "I thought the interviewer was looking
for a right or wrong answer rather than just looking to under-
stand more of who I am."
Through the program, Merritt came to see interviews as
conversations—a way for executives to get to know her beyond
her résumé.
"My greatest takeaways were to be confident in my abil-
ities and take my time to give thorough responses," she says.
"My practice interviewer encouraged me to put my nerves
aside and use a storytelling approach to behavioral questions
to better connect with the interviewer."
Youssef Allam, who won the GEICO Interview Challenge
this fall, came into the program with extensive interview expe-
rience yet still learned valuable techniques, like how to effec-
tively respond to questions using the STAR (situation, task,
action, result) method.
"The course helped me become more aware of how my
experiences could become good interview moments," says
Allam, a senior who serves as a business development analyst
" My greatest takeaways were
to be confident in my abilities
and take my time to give
thorough responses."
— SYDNEY MERRITT
Photos: Tom Wolf
