Entry by Pat Patterson
Last Friday I posted an entry about how to prepare for a career fair. You also need to lay out a game plan of the organizations you will visit and the order in which you will visit them. I would recommend visiting those organizations you are less interested in first to build up your confidence when you speak with those recruiters from organizations you are more excited about.
Here is some advice to help guide you during the career fair:
DURING a career fair:
- Arrive early,
- dress professionally,
- have your resume, portfolio, and a pen ready,
- proceed to the organizations that you identified you are interested in,
- be aware of your posture and body language,
- relax,
- be confident,
- be approachable – SMILE,
- offer a firm, confident handshake to recruiters with eye contact,
- execute your *elevator speech,
- ask any questions you prepared, and
- make sure to collect contact information from recruiters.
*An elevator speech is like a business card. You need to be able to say who you are, what you do, what you are interested in doing and how you can be a resource to your listeners.
Basic Example:
Hi, my name is ___________. I will be graduating/I just graduated from ____________________with a degree in _____________________. I’m looking to_____________________.
For a list of upcoming career fairs near you, check out our events page on Indiana INTERNnet.
Good luck!
