By Pnina Steiner, Master Resume & Interview Coach, FirstGen Ahead
As with last year, many universities will host virtual career fairs during the fall and spring semesters, and separate career fairs based on industry, such as finance or biotechnology.
Reasons to Participate:
- You are seeking a professional experience/internship.
- You want to enhance your networking with potential employers and explore your career options.
How to Prepare:
- Update your resume and have it reviewed by your coach. Upload it on your university system (such as Handshake) so employers can easily access it before, during, and after the career fair.
- Visit your university website where the virtual career fair is being hosted.
- Register ahead of time and create a calendar reminder.
- Research the companies that you are interested in connecting with and learn about them ahead of time. Use the company website to gather information such as the company’s products and services, locations, public vs. private and available positions.
- Sign up for one-on-one and group employer sessions in advance of the date of the career fair.
- Think through your introduction and practice your elevator pitch.
- List questions to ask employers that you identified.
- Make sure you are wearing business professional attire and that the background others will see during the video event is free of distractions and appropriate.
What to Expect at a Virtual Career Fair:
- The format of a virtual career fair varies based on the host and how you will interact with employers depends on the setup. There may be group information sessions, one-on-one short (ten minutes or less) video sessions, or group/individual chats.
- Some employers may use the fair as an opportunity to screen and interview candidates.
At the Career Fair:
- Participate in a distraction-free environment, a quiet location where you will not be disturbed. Have your notes and your resume in front of you for reference.
- Show up for your session on time, have a digital copy of your resume and questions prepared for each employer.
- Look at your camera not on your computer screen to establish eye contact and introduce yourself, relax, smile, and speak slowly but clearly and confidently; demonstrate professional body language and good posture.
- Articulate how your interests and qualifications align with the employer’s needs.
- Ask for the next steps and contact information.
- Take notes after each employer session. Type your chat responses using Microsoft Word and paste them into the career fair chatbox. Avoid using slang and emojis.
- Smile and thank the employer when you’re logging out of the session.
After the Career Fair:
- Using the contact information you collected, send a thank you email to the employers you met within 24 hours.
- Keep a spreadsheet of all your contacts.
- Connect with the employers on LinkedIn.
- Within 7-10 days of the career fair, make follow-up contact with whom you spoke to about a possible interview. Ask your FirstGen Ahead coach to help you craft that email content.
- Discuss your career fair experience with your coach, including what you learned about the process, what you thought you did well and why, and what you would do differently at the next career fair you attend and why.
