Attending Career Fairs: waste of time or an effective way of finding a job? By: Amanda the bizgal

Several weeks ago I attended my very first and yes I mean first career fair which is quite ironic for a Gen Y career and image coach to only be attending my first fair at age 30! I had heard mixed reviews about career fairs and with the bizMe Career Camp just a few months away, I thought why not spend an afternoon networking with recruiters and hiring managers that are in the market to hire recent college grads. I was actually a little nervous as I entered the room. It all seemed overwhelming especially if you put yourself in the shoes of a young recruit worrying about making a positive first impression—lots of display tables, huge signage for the companies represented and many smiling recruiters standing by their booths eagerly awaiting someone to talk too! I can only imagine how anxious these college seniors felt entering the room, dressed for success and thinking this is an amazing opportunity to land my first career position. Could they have been more WRONG. I was totally surprised and caught off-guard with my expectations and the reality of what occurred. I am going to share my observations of what I saw, what I heard from the people standing behind the booths and who I met. What I saw: • It should not be surprising to anyone that people wearing jeans, a tank top and a neon bra underneath has little to no chance of getting any sort of attention from anyone looking to hire a serious candidate. • A mini skirt is also not acceptable career wear for a professional. I understand we have seen enough movies where females have gotten ahead in their fields based on how they dress but believe me, this is not a good strategy if your intention is to be viewed as a must-hire because she’s just that qualified. • I was truly shocked to see many company reps sitting behind their booths rather than engaging with the attendees and the event. As I approached these booths, the reps wouldn’t even stand to greet me. This lazy tactic and nonchalant attitude does not paint a positive work force for the company they represented . It made me think . . .wow what lazy employees. What I heard: • “I really wish these college students would know how to approach an employer” was the comment I heard most frequently from the recruiters. This company rep was referring to the lack of an elevator pitch from potential hiring candidates when approaching the table. Always be ready with your elevator pitch–what you are looking for and who you are and then say this to everyone you are networking with whenever you are in a position to be searching for possible job leads. • “Please send your resume to this address http://www.anycompany.com/careers and someone will get back to you.” WHAT A JOKE!! The experience I have had with working with recruiters and hiring managers has been about tapping into their network. I get lots of requests from employers asking me if I know someone who would be a good fit for xyz postion. In some industry like teaching, they do check the online site but mostly it is all about who you know and building a relationship, not sending your resume blindly into a website. I was so disappointed to hear that they are actually sending people there. They are not even setting these students up to be successful. • This one is my favorite: “It is company policy that we cannot give out our business card.” It seems unbelievable that a company has a policy in which employees are banned from passing out business cards. When I asked about why there was such a policy, I was told so that they are not buried with emails that don’t relate to work. Interesting concept because if you are at a career fair trying to recruit new hires, isn’t that about work? Who I met: Did you know that recruiters and hiring managers for many companies don’t even attend Career Fairs? I know you are thinking, there is no way that is true but it is. As I was walking around to the different tables I met more accountant and reps from administrative and finance departments rather than recruiters. When asked why they were attending this career fair instead of a recruiter or HR person, their answer was that the hiring managers were too busy!! Too busy? I truly felt bad for all the hopeful seniors that attended this career fair thinking they were being proactive and getting a jumpstart on the process of finding a job. Would I recommend going to a Career Fair? Yes, I would because for every two accountants sitting behind a booth, there is one recruiter. If you think you are going to attend a career fair and walk out of there with a job, you need to re-think your strategy. Career Fairs are a great way to practice meeting people and engaging in conversation, which are two very important skills when you finally get that interview. So definitely go and practice, practice, practice. I do think however, that universities need to re-evaluate where they are spending their time and money in terms of helping students find jobs. Just because Career Fairs are something that Universities have always done doesn’t mean that this is the most effective means of helping college seniors get face time with potential employers. Hiring strategies that now include social media connections and networking have totally changed the job search process.