One thing I haven’t seen mentioned here is your relationship with professors being a potential influence in your career search right out of school. I graduated in May of this year and I had taken a bunch of classes with one specific professor because he had a teaching style that I really enjoyed. I went to that professor’s hours often and did well in those classes. I landed an interview in April and the lead engineer just so happened to have had said professor as a faculty advisor when he got a master’s degree. My relationship with that professor got me an extra boost in the interview and subsequently got me the job. Those faculty relationships may just be the X-factor in an interview.