How to Make Job Fairs Work for You

We are entering the season of job and career fairs. You want to put your best foot forward and impress the potential employer, here's how:

1. Obtain a list of the employers who are going to be there from the hosting agency. This way you can target your resume to the employers you want to work for prior to the job fair.

2. Send your resume and letter of interest to those companies of interest before the job fair. This gives you an advantage over those who are waiting for the job fair to take place. Make sure you bring plenty of copies of your resume to the career fair on resume bond paper (again, you want to stand out from other job seekers). Your local One Stop or Career Center will allow you to make copies on resume paper prior to the fair for free. Some job fairs, have portable copiers, but do not rely on that.

3. Prepare your interview outfit. At a job fair you still want to dress how you would normally dress for a regular interview except ladies you might want to wear comfortable shoes because you will be doing a lot of walking and standing. Men and women may want to dress in layers so you can remove or dress a little lighter as you may become warm because of more movement at a job fair. You also want to prepare your outfit in advance to make sure it still fits and if it doesn't, you will have ample time to look for something else.

4. Do a dry run to make sure you know where you are going if you are unfamiliar with the location and also to time how long it takes to get there so you will be on-time and be able to find a parking space the day of. You also want to make sure you have money for parking meters and parking lots.

5. Attend the fair that you have preparing for! Make sure you eat a good power breakfast and you have practiced the #1 question most recruiters ask at job fairs. That question is: "So what brings you here today?" You could say things like, "I'm really excited to be here today, I was just reading about your company _____________ and you have a position available for ______________. Well I have experience in ________________ and would love to work for your company. How do you suggest I follow-up after the fair? May I have your business card? Thank you for your time." Make sure you do not take up too much time rambling and asking questions you should already know from your research. Be considerate of other job seekers who want their time to talk to the recruiters too.

6. Because of your prior research you are going to stop at the tables of interest first and then you will work your way around the room to the other employers. You never know, they may have a position they did not advertise for at the fair, but after receiving your wonderful resume they take it back to the Human Resource Manager and you may get called for an interview.

7. Go home and send out thank you notes/emails/letters from the business cards you should have obtained from the fair. Keep applying for jobs until you have a job offer. My signature follow-up rule is 5-7 days after sending your documents or interview, but you should always send a thank you within 24 hours of an interview.

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For more help preparing your resume or interview skills for an upcoming job fair, book your appointment with me online

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