Career Fairs

Reasons to Attend A Career Fair
Regardless of your major, year in college, or future goals, there are numerous benefits to attending a Career Fair. 

Some of the more common reasons:

• Increase your chances of receiving an interview with an employer
• Expand your network of contacts
• Investigate positions, occupations and/or career fields you could pursue with your specific major and background
• Learn more about employers and their available positions
• Receive sound job search advice from seasoned company recruiters

What to Expect at a Career Fair
Having realistic expectations of a Career Fair is important in succeeding in your career search. The following list can be helpful to identify any misconceptions of a Career Fair:

• Employers expect students to be prepared (i.e. be professionally dressed, ask thoughtful questions, have a polished resume)
• Employers expect to interact with students seeking employment as well as those simply researching careers and employers
• Most recruiters are not authorized to hire candidates on the day of the fair. With this in mind, your goal should be to land an interview - not a job offer
• Employers' goals are to be exposed to as many job candidates as possible; therefore, you will have a relatively short amount of time to sell yourself and make a positive impact on the employer
• Attending a Career Fair for the first time can be a little overwhelming. However, if you have taken time to prepare for the fair, you will get as much out of the Career Fair event as you put into it
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Before The Career Fair
Target your top ten companies: If possible, get a list of the companies/organizations who will be attending the career fair and plan your strategy for which companies you would like to visit. Take time to research the ten organizations in which you are most interested. However, give yourself time to meet with most of the employers who attend the fair.

• Prepare a Résumé: Have it proofed by the Career Development Center Staff
• Create a List of Questions: Create a list of questions that you would like to ask the employers.
• Prepare to Answer Questions: Remember, employers will also be asking you questions! You will be expected to think on your feet, so be prepared to answer their questions.
• Learn to Sell Yourself: Create a 60-second commercial & practice, practice, practice!
• Arrive Early: In many cases arriving early means avoiding long lines. Also, some of the employers will leave before the career fair has ended and you don't want to miss an opportunity of speaking with a company/organization that you would like to see.
• Make a Good First Impression: Be sure you are wearing professional business attire.

During The Career Fair
Be Confident: It is important that you understand that employers view candidates as possible future employees of their organization. Therefore, you need to display enthusiasm, confidence, sincerity and the ability to communicate clearly. Smile; walk confidently with good posture, and make consistent and direct eye contact.

Chart Your Course: Survey the room to determine where employers are located and in what order you plan to visit them. If possible, avoid standing in long lines. If there is a long line to speak with a representative, keep moving and return later.

Introduce Yourself: When it's your turn to meet the employer, take a deep breath, smile, shake hands firmly and begin your "60 second" commercial. Be sure to make direct eye contact with the employer throughout your conversation. Also, watch your tempo and tone when speaking to the employer. A common nervous habit is to speak too quickly and/or too loudly or softly.

Ask Meaningful Questions:
It is a good idea to ask one or two meaningful questions without monopolizing the employer's time.
At this point, it is generally not a good idea to ask about salary.
If you are currently an undergraduate, be sure to ask about internship, co-op, summer employment and scholarship opportunities.

Prepare to Follow-up: At the end of your conversation, be sure to:

• Thank the employer for his/her time
  Leave a copy of your Résumé
• Ask the employer for a business card, company literature and protocol for follow-up
• If the employer says they do not have a position in your field, ask for the address of the Personnel Office so you can write. Nearly all employers hire all majors! The person you are talking with may not be aware of all the opportunities offered by their company.
• As soon as you walk away from the employer, jot down a few notes about your conversation. You may want to bring up a few memorable points that were discussed during your visit to include in your follow-up letter.
  

Send Thank-You Letters: Be sure to send thank you letters to employers that you meet within one week. Most candidates do not make the effort to send thank you letters; why not give yourself the competitive edge!

Be Persistent: Observe the follow-up procedures suggested by the employer. Once you have complied with these procedures, if a reasonable amount of time has passed and you have not heard from the employer, it is okay to send a letter to the employer inquiring about the status of your application.

Don't:

• Cruise booths with a group of friends. Make your own positive impression.
• Come dressed for ball practice. A career fair is a professional activity.
• "Wing it" with employers. Do your homework! Research companies.

Career Fair Checklist:

• Portfolio/Briefcase (Women should either carry a briefcase or handbag -never both.)
• Pen and Notebook
• At least 20 Résumés
• Copies of transcript
• Copies of list of references
• Appropriate clothing including comfortable, professional shoes
• Small breath mints - no gum!
• A Positive Attitude
  

Dress for Success

Women:

• Solid color, conservative suit, pant suit
• Coordinated blouse
• Moderate shoes
• Limited jewelry
• Neat, professional hairstyle
• Tan or light hosiery
• Sparse make-up & perfume
• Neatly-trimmed nails
• Portfolio or briefcase

Men:

• Solid color, conservative suit
• White long sleeve shirt
• Conservative tie
• Dark socks, professional shoes
• Very limited jewelry
• Neat, professional hairstyle
• Use only minimal aftershave
• Neatly trimmed nails
• Portfolio or briefcase

Business Casual for Women:

• Appropriate: Skirts, which are no shorter than 3 inches above the knee; blouses, sweaters, polo-style shirts, jumpsuits, khaki pants, which are neither too loose nor too tight, and which are not too faded, frayed or otherwise distressed. Boots, dressy sandals, and pumps.
• Inappropriate: Novelty tee shirts (those with printed writing, slogans or numbers), shorts, spandex pants, crop tops, tank or halter tops, sweatshirts, sweatpants, hats, sundresses which are backless or have straps less than 1 inch in width, leather pants, and flip flops.

Business Casual for Men:

• Appropriate: Dress slacks, "Dockers" style slacks, sports shirts, polo shirts, and sweaters. Clean topsiders and loafers.
• Inappropriate: Shorts, novelty tee shirts (those with printed writing, slogans or numbers), sweatshirts, sweatpants, tank tops, cropped tops, hats, and flip-flops.