After celebrating with friends and family, and gaining 5-10
pounds after the holidays, it soon will be time to get back to Cal for yet another semester. On the docket for this Spring are numerous Career
Fairs that present great opportunities for finding that perfect job,
internship, or simply more information about your interests from various
industry professionals. However, Career Fairs can be quite tricky and
intimidating for many. You walk into a room to find dozens of employers,
hundreds of Cal kids in full banquet attire running around from table to table,
and lines that look like there is a bread shortage in the country. Don’t be
alarmed – the Career Center is here to help you prepare for a successful Career Fair experience! Here are some personal thoughts to keep in
mind to help you successfully navigate these events:
First off, completely forget about all the other Cal students; none of them are going to give you a job/internship, so worrying
about what they do is completely irrelevant to your objectives. Come prepared,
bring resumes, dress reasonably (no sports attire, but full prom regalia is not
necessary either-you’re in college after all!). You can go online in advance to sneak a peak at the employers
who will be in attendance, which will save you time so that you can approach
those you are interested in first. For those individuals who have specific
interests in terms of what they are looking for, zero in on those employers. Assuming
you have specific interests for a valid, well-developed reason, you should have
no problem initiating conversation, “Hello, my name is X, I am extremely
interested in Y.” This is usually enough to get the ball rolling. If you are
not sure of your specific interests, you can go the route of asking the
employers about the kinds of opportunities they offer. Always inquire if the
employer will be wiling to look/take a resume. Some will refuse due to their policy
(don’t take it personally), but some will happily accept them. Employers
accepting resumes usually make notes about your conversation on the resume so
they can remember you. This is a great
way to leave a personal impression, but also make sure to grab a business card
as well to follow up with a brief “thanks for chatting with me at the career
fair” note.
It is always important to remember that the employers are
people too, and chatting with them as such is a big plus in your exploration
process. Ask them what they do for the company specifically; some may hold
positions that will give you more material for conversation. I once started a
great conversation with an employer because of the free umbrellas they were
handing out at their table……I mean who doesn’t want a free umbrella? If you
stand there and list off questions as if you were a futuristic automaton devoid
of any pretence at a human conversation, the employer might be put off. If
there is a gigantic line to speak with someone popular, and of interest to you,
try and wait it out or arrive early in the morning because as most of us know, Cal students are definitely NOT morning people. Bring your resumes and your smile with a touch
of human conversation, and you’ll be able to get the information you need and
your name across which will hopefully get you to that next step. This next step is also something which you
should ask about, as in “I’m really interested in the position (which we just
talked about), what are the next steps?” Also check out this great ARTICLE and these general TIPS as well!
Good luck to all of you! Don’t forget to look at the list of upcoming Career Fairs for the Spring
and mark your calendars now! And remember,
if you have any questions at all, please post them in “comments”. We Peer Advisors are here to help!
by Peer: Andrew Neginskiy: 4th Year, Psychology 
