Katie Holmes and Zooey Deschanel at a career fair

Smart, well-spoken, beautiful students at a top university - a recruiter's dream

Several years ago, I watched a Stephen Gaghan film called “Abandon” starring Katie Holmes and Benjamin Bratt. The reviews for this film were very negative and the trailer is absolutely ridiculous – it makes the film look like a straight-up action thriller.

Despite the criticism, I really liked this film because of the character Katie Holmes portrays – she’s a college senior on the verge of graduating from a top university and has to simultaneously complete her thesis, ace her exams, and go through a grueling interview process to land a top job. Despite the fact that Katie (SPOILER ALERT!) doesn’t turn out to be who we think she is, her character is very smart, well-spoken, and possesses an inner strength that will no doubt propel her to the top career-wise. I really liked watching the scenes where she was interacting with recruiters, interviewing, or focusing on her studies because it’s an ideal image of  “collegial success.”

My favorite scene from the film was an interview she did with McKinsey & Company. Roger Ebert liked it as well – “Watch the way Katie Holmes handles that interview with the high-powered corporate recruiters. It could be used as a training film.” I couldn’t find a video clip of the interview so here is the dialogue below:

Interviewer: Tell us about a problem you’ve encountered.

Katie: My guidance counselor tried to keep me from applying to good schools. I thought she was my friend. She said she understood me and that I would be happier staying close to home, junior college or secretarial school. She hated me.

Interviewer: What action did you take?

Katie: I invited a senator who attended college here to speak at our school.

Interviewer: And what was the result?

Katie: I got a strong letter of recommendation from a U.S. Senator, was accepted early decision and they gave me lots of financial aid.

Interviewer: And what did you learn from this experience?

Katie: Truthfully?

Interviewer: Of course.

Katie: Mrs. Castleman was a sneaky bitch. It was the first time I was betrayed by someone I trusted. I looked up to her. I didn’t come close to understanding the depth to which she resented me. I learned that people who help me, who invest in me become my partners, and my success is their success; that relationships are symbiotic. I learned responsibility based on others’ faith in me. I hope to be able to pay some dividends to those investors.

LATER ON, A CONVERSATION BETWEEN KATIE AND A FRIEND REGARDING THE INTERVIEW:

Amanda: Did you really call some lady a bitch?

Katie: Slight exaggeration.

Amanda: They saw sixty people and liked exactly two – you and that North Korean girl who speaks 8 languages.

Katie: They said that?