I attended the Saint Louis Community College – Flo Valley job fair last week. All in all, there were some great candidates there (and the weather was amazing!). But a few seekers stuck out in my mind… so I thought it might be a good time to let you in on how to prepare for a job fair. Here are ten tips for rocking the next job fair:
- Do some research. Find out what companies are attending and learn about them in advance. The more you know, the more you’re able to converse with the company rep.
- Deliver key messages quickly. Recruiters don’t have a lot of time to spend one-on-one, so be prepared. When asked what kinds of positions you’re seeking, have a succinct answer. Be able to sum up your education and work experience in a few sentences. If you need to, practice your pitch with a stop watch… it should be 60 seconds or less!
- Plan some questions. Always go into an interview (or a situation that could lead to an interview) with questions ready to go. Ask the recruiter about their experiences with the company, inquire about skill or qualities that the company is seeking, or ask about the hiring process.
- Get the representative’s business card. If your conversation with the company representative goes well, get a card and follow up with a thank-you email. Even if they don’t remember you at first, extending such an effort makes a lasting impression.
- Take advantage of the obvious. Some recruiters bring copies of current job postings, while other companies will have a newsletter at their booth. Find out as much as you can about the organization for future reference.
- Dress appropriately. Dress like you are going on an interview for the job you are seeking. I saw a guy at the last fair wearing a Scarface t-shirt, headphones and tinted glasses. Not sure what job he was looking for, but he can rest assured I won’t be calling…
- Be organized. Bring plenty of resumes with you. Keep them in a nice folder so you don’t stain or wrinkle them. Have some paper and make notes of each representative you meet.
- Be Polite. Smile and shake hands when meeting a representative. You would be surprised at all of the seekers who walk by a representative’s booth, look at their information on the table and don’t acknowledge the person standing there! At the very least, smile and say, “Hello.” Use good manners!
- Stay home if you are sick! If you wake up with a nasty cough or fever, stay home! Do not “spread the love” by going in public and shaking with your snotty hand. Gross! All job fairs have a staff behind the event, so send them your resume and ask them to pass it along to any viable employers. And, if they can, collect the company rep’s business card.
- Give recruiters time to respond. It never fails that after I return to the office after a job fair there are several voicemails from people I just met a few hours ago on my phone. Although their enthusiasm is great, I need time to check my email and other voice messages before contacting anyone about their resume. A response in two to three business days is a quick turn around time. Five to ten business days is average.
Hopefully none of you have made these “boo-boo’s” in the past, but feel free to pass these tips along to your friends and colleagues who are out there searching and may need some advice.
Abby is the Business and Jobs Editor for Girls Guide. She is an HR/Recruiting Specialist for a local, woman-owned staffing agency in Clayton by day, and an active volunteer all over St. Louis by night. You can email her at abigail184 [at] gmail [dot]com, and follow her on Twitter.
Finding a good job can be pretty troublesome. Especially when you have high expectations.
Here are some tips that helped me land the job of my dreams:
* You need to have a professional written resume. If you are not an expert, you could consider hiring one.
* Take into consideration what skills do you have. You may have more choices if you consider additional job titles.
* Don’t neglect any source of jobs : internet, newspaper, radio and other media. Ask your friends that have similar jobs if there may be an opening in their company.
* Don’t just send the resume by email and wait for an answer. You need to call them and have them confirm the job opening and receiving your resume.
Finding a job is pretty much a job in itself and it’s all about how well can you market your abilities.
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Thank you and bless you for your mention of good manners! Nothing says unprofessional faster than a limp noodle handshake or lack of eye contact.
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@Holly As the etiquette chair for my sorority in college, I feel it’s always important to use good manners, espeically when looking for a job! Emily Post, anyone?
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i’ve been looking for a job for a while now and have found that job fairs are great – if you want a job at a “regular” company. i’m looking for a non-profit, preferably with animals, job. not much of that at job fairs. i check the companies ahead of time, but it seems many are large corporate gigs. anybody got any advice – and/or does anybody know of any jobs like this?
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Alexis
Your observations about who attends job fairs is pretty right on. Unless a company is hiring for something specific, they aren’t going to attend job fairs “just because” (and why would they?). Large corporations and the Armed Services are always in recruiting mode; hence why we see them most often at the fairs we attend.
If you are looking for a job that’s not a traditional career path, I would suggest volunteering for an organization whose mission matches your ideal employer. Get to know the board members and volunteer coordinators. Find out if there’s a traditional career path OR if the type of job you’re looking for even exists! Those types of jobs aren’t going to come to you…so you have to make the opportunities happen on your own.
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