Career Fairs and Recruiters
A career fair is designed to be helpful to students seeking full-time jobs, internships and summer/part-time jobs. However, there is more to going to a career fair than merely putting on your suit and having a few résumés in hand. Attending a career fair means that you will be surrounded by company representatives from organizations where you may be interviewing and perhaps working someday. You can be certain of one thing at a career expo…you are being observed. That includes your body language, your verbal’s and the way you interact with others. Here are some career fair Do’s and Don’ts:
Do’s
- Introduce yourself to the representative.
- Make sure to sell yourself. You only have 1-2 minutes!
- Bring several copies of your resume and leave one with each company you speak with.
- Offer a firm handshake after each interview. Be sure to do research on the company after your initial contact to show interest.
Don’ts
- Expect recruiters to carry the conversation for you.
- Drop off your resume without talking to representative.
- Expect to learn everything there is to know about the company from the representative.
It isn’t easy to impress the recruiters who visit The Ohio State University campus. They are very particular about who they hire and they usually have the luxury of choosing from a large pool of great candidates. Your success in a screening interview will depend largely upon the strength of your preparation.
- Make sure that you understand your career objectives and can relay them to potential employers. Employers will want to know why you are interested in the job.
- Research the employer as well as the field in which you are interested in working.
- Know your strengths and be ready to illustrate them to potential employers.
- Practice your interview skills. Try mock interviews and reading the information provided on interviewing.
Have a great resume. Check out the resume resources provided by the Department of Animal Sciences.