Job Fair tips
I worked at a college for many years as a professional career advisor, so these tips are what I shared with my students who were trying to find a job in school or post-graduation! I have been told it helped them a great deal before they went to job fairs as well.
HANDSHAKES. Everyone is going to judge you on your handshake. You want to make sure to look them in the eye, and introduce yourself. Your grip should be firm, but don’t try to break their hand! If you’re worried about missing their hand, look and aim for their elbow before you look them in the eyes - it will help! If you get clammy hands when nervous, discretely wipe them on your pants before shaking someone’s hand.. No one wants to shake a sweaty hand!
RESUMES. Bring more than you need. Make sure you’ve edited and re-edited and had someone else look your resume over. You don’t want to have mistakes in your resume. Remember, a resume is just a brief overlook on who you are, be prepared to talk about your experiences and skills in detail. Practicing in front of a mirror can help.
ATTIRE. You should always dress up. Wear a suit and tie, or a pantsuit. It doesn’t matter what kind of job you’re looking for, everyone is impressed by someone who looks well put together. Make sure your clothes fit and are ironed/stain free the day before so you have no last minute scrambling to find something to wear.
PREPARE. Most job fairs should have an area where you can grab some water and relook over your resume and see what companies are actually at the fair. Do a little research on the ones that interest you so you aren’t going in totally blind OR prepare before. If you have something of note on your resume that will prompt a question, be ready to tell the story about it in a minute or two.
BUSINESS CARDS. Always ask for a business card for the booths you go up to! Most people will be ready to hand you theirs, but if they don’t you should ask. You want to do this so you can follow up with them the next day. If you have a business card (not a bad idea to stand out from the stack of resumes they’ll have!), give it to them when they give you theirs.
I hope this helps!! Job fairs can be especially confusing if you’ve never been to one. I also send my students over to https://career.berkeley.edu/Fairs/fairsTips if they have more questions.
George Willingston thanks for these tips!
Hey thanks for the advice I had no idea about how much went into it. I'll practice my handshakes and prepare a bunch thanks again
Yup.
What u wear is important because sometimes ppl will judge u. Dress up and look goooood!
I took a college course on professional development and this is ALL the kind of the information I learned in it! Where were you when I was paying for college?? We had a job fair twice a year there and my career advisor went through a powerpoint with all the tips (and fun gifs).
If you're at all nervous or worried on how to make the most out of the upcoming Cincinnati job fair THIS is the post for you.
Wow those are amazing tips and from an expert no less. Thank you for taking the time George! I couldn't agree more that business cards are important to bring with you, so anyone heading into job fair season should think about ordering them soon. I have always had good luck with Vista print ; ) Are there any others you would recommend or personally like?
This is great information, George. I agree on the handshake - it's often an overlooked part of meeting someone and shaking the hand of someone with a weak grip is the worst!
Thanks for sharing your years of expertise with the community. I have a feeling you are going to help a lot of people here on Jobcase with that background! You should host a seminar on this stuff.
Prefix advice