Job Fairs: Tips for Finding an Internship or Entry Level Job

If Web 2.0 is all about making existing web sites work properly and Web 1.0 was all about getting web sites on-line, then Web 0.0 must have been college job fairs. Technologically advanced they are not, yet don’t infer from my sarcasm that I dislike college job fairs. To the contrary, I am in favor of employers and candidates using a variety of methods to connect with each other. No serious marketer should put all of their eggs in one basket regardless of the success of that basket as there is a huge difference between success and exclusive success. In other words, there are normally multiple strategies that should be employed when marketing a product, service, employment opportunity, or your own services so don’t rely exclusively on job boards, newspaper ads, on-campus recruiting, referrals, or job fairs.

According to a to-do list published by the University of Minnesota, students who plan to attend a college job fair should do the following:

1. Before the job fair:
1. Update your resume and make multiple copies of it.
2. Do in-depth research on two or three employers who are of interest to you and who will be at the career fair.
3. Practice what you’ll say and how you’ll say it. You may only have 10 seconds to get your message across so don’t be long winded. At the same time, you may have 10 minutes to talk with a recruiter so have enough to say about yourself and enough questions to ask about them to more than fill that time. Leave them wanting more but not too much more.
2. At the job fair:
1. Dress professionally. If you’re looking for work as an accountant at a big firm, dress in a suit, not jeans. You’re interviewing, not going to class.
2. Focus on the two or three organizations that interest you the most.
3. Use a firm handshake and address the employer representative formally, such as Mr. Sam Jones or Dr. Sally Smith.
4. Demonstrate your knowledge, skills, and interests.
5. Highlight your relevant academic and practical experience and leadership skills.
6. Take notes. You’ll need them to properly follow-up.
7. Respond to their questions attentively and directly.
8. Collect the business cards of those you speak with, not just their trinkets. In fact, don’t ever walk up to a booth just to pick up a trinket. Recruiters have long memories and those trinkets come out of their recruiting budgets. They put out the trinkets to help them hire people, not to play Santa Claus.
3. After the job fair:
1. Use the business cards and notes to send thank you notes to each employer representative within two business days and preferably the same day. Refer to the job fair and something that you or they said to help jog their memory.
2. Re-state any important information discussed at the job fair in your thank you note and follow-up interviews.