So I went to a job fair this week, which makes me want to write about that. This one was at my school (Bentley) and about half the planet was there. So I figured I’d point out some dos and don’ts.
First, I’ll throw out that you want to make sure you bring enough copies of your resume and hold them in a nice looking folder or folder like item. I feel this one is obvious, if someone wants your resume, you should probably have enough for anyone and their mother.
Second, might want to make sure, if it’s a 2 pager, front and back, no stapling. The 1 page rule is a partial myth. In college, they tell us that you should limit your resume to 1 page. It’s true…usually…for kids of that age because basically an 18 year old likely doesn’t have the experience to fill 2 pages. For me, I’ve got a fair amount of stuff so my 2 pages is not filled with “worked line at Panera”, it’s filled with like “working understanding of delta hedging calculation and strategy”.
Third, try to avoid wearing a black suit. I realize that might be all you have, and that’s okay, it’s a matter that if you can look just as classy and sophisticated without looking like every other person at the fair, that’s a plus. I had a nice red shirt and some nice looking dress pants. I looked pretty good if I do say so myself. The point though was to stand out more than the eerily blue drab that dominated the sea of people walking around. It’s not a huge deal, but it’s a plus if you can stand out while still looking classy. Same thing goes for the ladies but don’t really understand female fashion (barely understand male fashion) so I don’t really know of any examples to give.
Fourth, you don’t necessarily need to get their all that early. Don’t get there 10 minutes before it ends while they’re packing up (if you do, give them a good excuse as to why you would) but you don’t need to get there in the first 10 minutes either. It’s good to be enthusiastic but those people have to be there for several hours and if everyone only shows up in the first 30 minutes, they’ll be bored for the next 3. Maybe show up at like hour 2 or hour 3 when the place has died down but people are still there. You might be better remembered too.
That’s really all I can think about right now, I haven’t been feeling all that well. Y’all have a good week.