A few weeks ago, I attended the Job Fair Prep workshop which was also held in the multipurpose room of the Vertical Campus at Baruch College. Although, I was not planning on going to the Diversity Job and Internship Fair which was being held the next day, I attended this workshop in order to gain some knowledge about how to prepare for a job fair in the near future.
Upon entering the multipurpose room, each of us received a career fair preparation guide which mirrored the speakers’ very impressive presentation. The two speakers were both representatives from Verizon who very energetic and enthusiastic throughout the presentation. They were extremely upfront and honest about what kind of qualities they look for during the 30 seconds that they meet with students at job fairs. They explained that the students’ goal has to be to market themselves as effectively as they can during the short period of time that they meet with employers.
First and foremost, they said that we have to dress professionally and come in with strong knowledge about the company that we are interested in. In addition, they emphasized the importance of preparing a 30 second personal pitch in order to leave a lasting impression. The presenters added that employers look for passionate individuals that really want to work for their companies. They said that we should always bring several polished resumes, obtain business cards, and follow up with employers by sending “thank you” letters. Lastly, the presenters said that we should take notes on our own impressions and organize them along with company literature and business cards in order to have a better sense of what companies we most want to pursue. Overall, I really enjoyed this presentation and I believe that I will hugely benefit from the information I acquired in the near future. I think that it was definitely one of the best workshops that I attended.