Job fairs don’t have much in common with actual fairs. There’s no dunk tank, no insanely unhealthy fried food, no tea cup rides or Ferris wheels or skee-ball. A good day at a fair can create memories that last a lifetime; a job fair can also change your life if you spend your time wisely. The roller coaster you ride at a job fair is your career prospects, and there’s a way to get on that ride that’ll keep you from falling behind. Keep your arms and legs inside the ride, strap in, and read on as we break down how to make the most of your job fair experience.
Look Polished & Presentable
First impressions matter. You should dress to impress. Keep in mind that sometimes you might get an impromptu job interview at a job fair, so dressing as though you are going to an actual interview doesn’t hurt. Dress like a professional and act like one.
"Employers want to get to know the real you," said Carole Redden, Rio Salado College's Career Services supervisor. "So smile, make eye contact, show your interest, and dress for success."
Consider planning your attire the evening before to avoid any potential wardrobe malfunctions during the career fair. You want to look presentable and approachable; be friendly and open to conversation, but don’t be too informal. You’re here to find a job, not aimlessly shoot the breeze with everyone you meet.
"We don't have to be perfect but we can put our best foot forward by avoiding slang, negative, or inappropriate language," said Redden.
Do Some Research
Make sure you do some legwork before you go pounding the pavement at a job fair. If the job fair has a site or event page, look to see who’ll be tabling at the fair. Check to see if there is a dress code, parking fees, and other logistical considerations like operating hours and whether or not you need to register in advance or fill out any forms to go. If you plan to go to a job fair right when it opens, make sure you leave early enough to avoid morning commute traffic. Since you usually don’t have to make an appointment to go to a job fair, being “late” isn’t the issue; it’s the stress of being stuck in traffic and/or rushing to the fair that you’re trying to avoid. You want to show up relaxed and calm, a state of mind that can be hard to achieve if you’ve been stewing in traffic all morning.
Another part of research is seeing what companies will be tabling at the job fair. Knowing in advance who’ll be there gives you the opportunity to tailor your pitch and resume to them. Think of specific questions you can ask at the job fair that displays your knowledge of the company. Being able to speak about the company’s values and mission and underlining how you are in alignment with them will help your cause.
Update Your Resume
How current is your resume? Make sure that you bring a freshly revised and succinct resume to the job fair. Only include the most essential information: the skills you want to highlight, the job history that’s most relevant to the position you’re pursuing, and two to four professional references (be sure to let your references know ahead of time that you’ll be using them on your resume). This is where doing that research ahead of time comes in handy: you can retool your resume and cover letter to specifically play to these employers. Pay attention to the type of language these employers use in their posted job descriptions; you can pull out key words to use in your resume and cover letter. Look for action words and anything tied to specific job skills and make sure those words appear in your resume.
It also never hurts to bring a few recent letters of recommendation with you to include with your resumes.
As to the question of whether or not to bring customized resumes for each employer or to go for a more all-purpose resume, it depends on your job fair goals. Are you just here to see what’s available and want to circulate a bunch of resumes? Then aim for a “Swiss Army Knife” resume that could work for several different employers. If you’re looking to specifically apply to a few specific businesses at the fair, it can be worth the effort to make a few specialized resumes/cover letters that target them specifically (just make sure you have them separated so you don’t give out the wrong ones!).
Prepare an Elevator Pitch
It’s always good to have a well-prepared and concise elevator pitch handy when you’re at a job fair. An elevator pitch is a short-and-sweet (30-60 seconds) brief about yourself, your talents, career history, and academic achievements. It helps to think of the elevator pitch as an argument for yourself: like a good lawyer, you’re presenting your case in the hopes of swaying your audience. A good elevator pitch should be framed around what you can do for the company in question; it should highlight how the skills and experience you have make YOU the right person for the job.
Redden offers this as an example of an effective elevator pitch: "I am a business major at Rio Salado College. I have four years of customer service experience, great computer skills, and I love helping people! I'm looking to apply my skills and experience to a customer service role."
You may not get a chance to do your pitch; an organic opportunity to do so may not present itself. That’s totally fine; the important thing is to have a pitch in your backpocket so you’re not caught off-guard and having to improvise one off the top of your head.
Ask for Next Steps
Something important to keep in mind: the people manning the booths at job fairs may not be recruiters or hiring managers. Sometimes they’re people who are there to talk about the company in a general capacity; they may not even work in the department you’re trying to get hired in! While they may not be your interviewer, if they’re at a job fair they know what the next step in the process is. After talking with them, ask what the next step is: Is there someone you should reach out to? Do you need to apply online or make an appointment? Also be sure to ask for a business card. You’re going to meet a lot of people at a job fair and it’ll be hard to keep track of all those names. If you do end up getting an interview later, being able to say you talked to “Sally Smith” at the job fair will show you have a good memory and an attention to detail.
Join us at the job fair!
Put your newfound job fair skills to the test at JobFest 2024! This job fair will be happening in-person on November 7, 2024, at Rio Salado’s Conference Center in Tempe.
Article by Austin Brietta
Career Corner
Looking for more of our career stories? Check out these blogs: