This is so depressing
This isn't meant to be a coherent post. It's this application season hitting me hard (London)........
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It sounds like you're going through a tough time with the application season in London. Rejection can be incredibly disheartening, especially when you're putting in so much effort. Here are a few points to consider:
Stay strong and keep pushing forward.
Damn—nothing seems to be working
how many 1:1 calls did you do leading up to recruiting season?
Environment is very different in London- HR runs the show, networking can be helpful but not directly useful in most cases like US/CAN
Networking has SO MANY benefits, even in the UK where HR is more involved early.
1. Your answer why X firm/group and industry knowledge improves 10x if you're well networked within a firm
2. If you're well networked within a firm, when you speak with HR, there will be a bias in your favor
3. When you get to the assessment center and you've spoken with 3 of the 7 pros that give you a final round, do you think that is a significant advantage over someone who has 0-1?
4. The act of speaking to professionals in the industry prior to ACs helps you refine your why, your TMAY..it even makes your hirevues better
5. After 100+ calls, you are naturally a better conversationalist AND a better speaker
...we've placed thousands of kids in London...I hate this refrain that "it's different here" because it gives London students an excuse not to dramatically tilt the odds in their favor.
If you're not aggressively networking in London you are doing it wrong. Period.
Hey same here man, want to chat about it?
https://www.thestudentroom.co.uk/showthread.php?t=6940372
Luck/randomness plays too big of a factor for you to take it personally. There's also the diversity stuff however that's a whole different story.
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