Career Coach: How to Work a Job Fair
Make an Impression Smile, extend your hand and introduce yourself using your 15-second pitch. Speak loud enough so they can hear you above the crowd. You’ve done your homework so you know what the employer needs and your career goals are a perfect match. This is your chance to tell the employer that you understand he/she is looking for “x” and you are “x. “You want the employer to make a note on the back of your résumé/leave-behind which will make them contact you. Give the recruiter your marketing materials (résumé, reel, shot breakdown, disposable portfolio) and ask about the job(s) you are interested in. “Do not be a time waster. There will be lines at many of the booths. The employers want to visit with as many people as they can so keep your introduction brief and meaningful,” suggests Winn.
Some Don’ts Some Do’s Get a business card: Ask for a business card and write down whatever you might have discussed at the job fair on the back. Organize those cards so when you get home, you can follow up.
Practice courtesy: Winn reminds, “Be nice to everyone you meet — not just those behind the booths. You never know who the person next to you is or what company they may be representing.”
What You Can Expect During the Job Fair With hundreds of applicants visiting the booths, the company recruiters won’t have a chance to view your reel during the job fair and have you go through it with them. It’s essential that your package is properly prepared and you include a résumé and shot breakdown. Your reel will be reviewed but it’s impossible to have it reviewed during the fair itself. (If you’re extremely lucky your reel may be reviewed that night.)
Each employer’s time is valuable. With scores of attendees and dozens of companies, preparing your strategy in advance will help ensure that the few minutes you have with each employer is productive and leaves a positive impression. Tailor your approach to the limited time you will have with any employer. Datz says, “Applicants should not be shy, nor should they be obnoxiously self-confident, either.”
Don’t eat while walking through a job fair. Don’t talk on your cell phone unless it is an employer calling to line up an interview. Don’t chew gum. Don’t bring children with you.
Take note(s): Bring pens and a notebook, where you can keep notes organized better than on the backs of fliers or your own résumé.
“It seemed like everyone was there. I felt like I got a bum’s rush — they didn’t even look at my reel.”
What You Can Expect After the Job Fair It will take several months after a big conference like SIGGRAPH for the reviewers to get through the hundreds or thousands of reels they’ll receive at SIGGRAPH. That’s why it is such a good idea to send your reel to employers two or three months before a big job fair or conference so they can review your reel under the best conditions. Don’t expect to hear from an employer unless he wants to interview you. If anyone does take the time to give feedback, listen, take notes and thank them profusely for taking the extra effort to help you.
Follow-Up The job fair at SIGGRAPH will be held on Tuesday, August 2 and Wednesday, August 3, 2005. Doors open at 10:00 am and close promptly at 4:00 pm. There will also be a place where job seekers can post their résumés at the Career Center free of charge. Candidates should provide plenty of copies of their résumé to the Career Center so they can fulfill requests from employers.
Pamela Kleibrink Thompson is making several presentations at this year’s SIGGRAPH conference, including Course 22: “Résumés and Demo Reels: If Yours Aren’t Working, Neither are You,” and participating in a panel called “Educating the Educators” and making an abbreviated presentation on résumés and demo reels in the educators program as well. When she’s not speaking, she’ll probably be found at the Career Center or Job Fair. Pamela is a recruiter, hiring strategist, and career coach and speaks often on career issues at conferences and colleges.
“I gave them my reel. I haven’t heard anything and it’s been two weeks already.”
You have to stand out from those thousands of other applicants they met at the job fair. Most applicants will never do any follow-up after the fair, but if you have discovered a company that interests you, stay in contact with them periodically and send an updated résumé and reel every six months. Continue to express an interest in the company and try to set up a time for an interview.
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