By Katrina Clymer, Academic Advising Professional
Attending a job fair gives you the opportunity to shop job options after college.
These events showcase national and regional employers from various industries who
are looking to engage with the next crop of employees; hey, that’s you! Working the
job fair is key- you’ll want to do your research, prepare your resume, and dust off
your networking skills to make the job fair work for you.
Do your research: In most cases, fair organizers will release the list of employers attending the fair.
Here’s your chance to really shine. Check out the list and find the companies that
you are most interested in meeting. Google them. What are they all about? Have they
been in the news? Having a talking point ready shows the employer you did your research,
you are invested in your future, and would likely be a good candidate for their company.
Prepare your resume: Once you’ve completed your research and targeted a few employers, take a look at
your resume. Do you need to update contact info? How about skills or work history?
Tailor your resume to your audience- Get rid of any irrelevant information. Make sure
your resume is easy to review quickly; a recruiter typically spends 25 seconds scanning
a resume. Use bold, italicized, and bulleted options to guide the reader’s eye to
the most important parts of your resume. Consider having your resume printed on resume
quality paper and picking up a portfolio to keep your document crisp until the hand-off.
Ready, Set, Network: Why is it so important? Networking is key when you are job hunting and will be a huge
part of your professional career. Increasing your number of contacts, increases potential
opportunities, which improves your chances of getting hired. At a job fair you are
presented with multiple opportunities to get your name in the pool. Have plenty of
resumes or business cards available to hand out to existing and new contacts.
Upcoming Job Fairs & Networking Events:
Thursday, 2/21/19
Network Like a Pro Juggling Tapas & Mock-Tails
Hilton Garden Inn
5:30 pm -7 pm
Tuesday, 2/26/19
Engineering & Technology Job Fair
UW Union – Yellowstone Ballroom -10 am – 3 pm
Wednesday, 2/27/19
Big Job Fair
UW Union – Yellowstone Ballroom -10 am – 3 pm