JOB PLACEMENT

What to do in Career and Job Fair?

Here are the keys to successfully navigating a career or job fair. Follow these simple rules and you should achieve success in this important strategic tool of job-hunting.

• Make a specific strategy for maximizing your time at the event. And don’t bother spending time with recruiters from companies that do not interest you.
• Pre-register for the event, and attempt to get the list of attending companies before the career fair.
• Do not eliminate companies because they are recruiting for positions outside your field; take the time to network with the recruiter and get the name of a hiring manager for your particular career field.
• Attempt to research basic information about each company you hope to interview with at the job fair. A common career fair question from recruiters is, “Why do you want to work for our company?”
• Don't just drop your resume ( Bio Data) on the recruiter’s table and walk off.
• Prepare a one-minute speech that focuses on the unique benefits you can offer the. employer
• Give a good 2 min lecture about your work experiences, skills, and abilities
• College students should be prepared for a question about your GPA by some recruiters. (And do use the GPA -- overall, college, major -- that makes you look the strongest.)
• Don't be afraid or intimidated by the recruiter; he or she is there to do a job ( nothing fancy)  -- to meet and screen potential candidates.
• Do have a few questions prepared for each recruiter, but don’t ask questions that any good job-seeker should already know, such as “What does your company do?”
• Say  the recruiter’s name several times during your conversation, even if you have to keep glancing at the recruiter’s nametag.
• Get a business card (or at least contact information) from each recruiter.
• Don't forget to eliminate such bad habits as playing with your hair, chewing gum, fidgeting, rocking from side-to-side, acting distracted, rubbing your nose, etc.
• Remember all the keys to successful interviewing, including a firm handshake, a warm smile, eye contact, and a strong voice.
• Do not use filler words such as "um", "like", "you know."
• Bring enough copies of your resume to the career fair. And do bring different versions of your resume if you are searching for different types of jobs.
• Take advantage of the time you have to build rapport with each recruiter, but don’t monopolize their time.
• Don’t ever just walk up to a booth and interrupt a current conversation; wait your turn and be polite.
• Do dress professionally -- conservative is always the safe choice. And wear comfortable shoes.
• Do not waste the opportunity to network, not only with the recruiters, but with fellow job-seekers and other professionals in attendance at the career fair.
• Don’t ever say anything negative to the recruiter about your college or previous jobs, companies, or supervisors.
• Be sure to ask about the hiring process of each company, but do not ask too many questions about salaries, vacation time, and other benefits.
• Take the initiative and ask about the next step in the process. And be prepared to follow-up all job leads.
• Be sure to follow-up with each recruiter. Some experts say to call and leave a message on their voicemail right after the job fair, but at a minimum you should send each recruiter a thank you letter. (Do read this sample career fair thank you letter.)