Social at SIUE

SIUE’s Spring Career Fair is coming up on March 6-7, and I’m sure we’re all stressing about it! It seems nerve-wracking and intimidating at first… and it kind of is. But once you get the lay of the land, it’s not so bad! Here are five tips, which I have had personal success with, to rock any career fair.

Be Prepared

 Build your resume and get it checked by a professional (hint: try the Career Development Center). Bring multiple copies of your updated resume with you in some type of folder or padfolio. The last thing you want is to be juggling a bunch of resumes and business cards, all while trying to act professional. Also, check out the employers before you go so you can do research on each company.

Dress Professionally

 Dress pants or skirt, button up shirt or blouse, a jacket, tie, and dress shoes are considered business professional. Trust me, you don’t want to show up underdressed! This is the first impression you are making on these employers. Dress for the job you want! If you need some more professional attire, the SIUE Career Development Center has options in their Cougar Career Closet open during their office hours.

Present Yourself Well

 Let’s face it…some people are more outgoing than others. That is perfectly ok! Try to be enthusiastic and show some confidence. Body language shows a lot about an individual. Stand up straight, make eye contact and introduce yourself with a firm handshake.

Practice Makes Perfect

 At the career fair check-in, you will be given a map of employers. Look through it and pick out the ones you definitely want to talk with. Then choose some that you might be interested in, but not as much as the others. Visit the tables you aren’t as interested in first, to practice your elevator speech. This will help with jitters and, if you mess up, it’s not as tragic as if you messed up with your favorite company.

Thank You Letter

 Congrats! You made it through the career fair! Now, you have tons of business cards. The next step is to reach out to each connection. Send them an email thanking them for coming to the career fair, express that you enjoyed learning about them and their company, and let them know if you are interested. Try to personalize the message for each recruiter so that you don’t sound like a robot. It doesn’t need to be super long, but doing this will set you apart from other candidates and show initiative. Keep in mind to apply to the jobs from employers within 24 to 48 hours of the career fair. They will most likely be looking for your name, so being the first to apply, puts you at the top of their list.

I hope these five tips helped you to not only make it through the career fair, but to succeed. SIUE’s Spring Career Fair will be Wednesday, March 6 for business, CAS and all non-teaching majors from 10 a.m.–2 p.m. Thursday, March 7 will be for engineering majors from 10 a.m.–2 p.m. Both events will take place in the Morris University Center’s Meridian Ballroom.

Author: Madeline Zuber, junior, applied communication studies major