What should I expect at a career fair?
Each year, hundreds of the world’s top employers gather to participate in national and regional career fairs to attract top graduate talent from around the country to fill internship and full-time opportunities. Career fairs are held both in person and virtually, like these Pomerantz Career Center career fairs.
The employers look to these fairs as their opportunity to cast a wider net and screen talent from outside their core target programs. They traditionally have roles earmarked to be filled specifically from these events. This is a tremendous opportunity to meet, interact, and interview with these organizations.
How do I get the most out of a career fair?
As mentioned above, this channel is where employers look to fill roles outside of their small set of target schools. That said, we strongly encourage you to capitalize on this opportunity. In doing so, please consider the following:
Register early & purchase a membership
Visit the conference web site and register to attend—at a minimum—the career fair portion of the event. At the same time, secure a membership to the organization. This will lower your conference fee and give you access to additional career fair resources, such as the job board.
Be prepared
Attitude and preparation are keys to success. You need to know your story, your skills, and what you want to do. Do your homework before the event and be prepared to do more at the event. Know the employers, alumni, and roles to the greatest extent possible. Have your suits pressed, extra shirts, ties, business cards, and twice the number of resumes than you plan to hand out. Have a plan of attack and be prepared to adapt to a changing environment and a certain degree of uncertainty.
Get ready to hustle
Get a good night’s rest and be prepared for a long and fast-paced couple of days. Participate in networking sessions as much as possible. Be confident and outgoing. Ask for the interview. Your attitude is key. You need to exude confidence, positivity, and polish, as everyone you interact with has the potential to lead to an opportunity—if not immediately, somewhere in the future if done well.
Post your resume and apply to jobs of interest
One of the primary resources from these events is the job board, where employers post opportunities and review candidate resumes. If recruiters identify a potential fit between their hiring needs and your profile, they will reach out prior to the conference to schedule an interview in advance of the fair. The sooner you do this, the better. This activity alone can enhance your conference experience as well as your likelihood for success.
Follow up & stay connected
This can be the most crucial step in this entire process. You will meet tens, if not hundreds of individuals, over the course of these events. Ask for business cards and be prepared to follow up in a timely manner. Add these new connections to your LinkedIn network and stay connected, corresponding with them regularly and purposefully. They will officially become part of your expanding network, and it is on you to maintain and develop these relationships moving forward.
Professional insight
“Start thinking today about how you communicate your personal brand attributes. Do you have a ready-made statement of your value? Are you developing brand ambassadors? Are you effectively communicating your brand through others? Are you ready for that defining moment when opportunity and preparation meet head-to-head? What can you say about yourself in six seconds that can immediately change your life outcome?
Having a focus on how you communicate your personal brand attributes is one of the most important lessons that I want you to take away from my book. The more effective you are in communicating the attributes that make you, a product, worth buying, the more value you will create for your brand, and the stronger impression you leave with others. Start to craft your elevator pitch today and begin taking inventory of your personal brand ambassadors. They will help you promote your brand so that you are not the only one working on your behalf and that your thirty-second commercial is worth watching.
The way you communicate your personal brand attributes has a direct effect on the perception that others create about your value.”