Succeeding at a Virtual Career Fair is not an Accident
By Valarie R. Austin, May 4thth, 2021, 10:30 AM EDT
During this worldwide pandemic, college students and graduates are navigating the hiring labyrinth for employment. Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, college campuses across the nation coordinated career fairs in which students interacted face-to-face with company recruiters. Since the pandemic began, colleges have started to sponsor virtual career fairs that use online video platforms such as Zoom Video Chat and Microsoft Teams. Some inexperienced job seekers may not appreciate the advantages of attending virtual college career or job fairs. Virtual hiring events offer many benefits for hiring managers and potential hires. College sponsored virtual job fairs provide savings on travel, hotel and meals as well as exhibitor booth costs for recruiters. This savings is a very good benefit for smaller, unfamiliar companies who job-seeking applicants may not have considered. The virtual career fair also provides access to a diverse pool of current students, recent graduates and alumni candidates. College students can use the virtual career fair to learn about companies that are hiring, types of jobs they are hiring for and requirements for the positions. An added bonus is students can develop and grow their professional network and interaction skills. A 2020 CNBC.com article stated that career experts expect 80% of recruiting to occur virtually even after the pandemic is contained (http://bit.ly/cnbc_virtualcareer_fair). With planning and research, college students can use virtual career fairs to gather information about specific companies and network with hiring managers to find the job of their dreams.
A Rasmussen University blog article explained the virtual career fair process in which each recruiter operates within a virtual interview room (http://bit.ly/rasmussen_virtualcareer_fair). The recruiter can use the virtual room for a private session with a candidate or an open chat forum with several candidates. Each potential hire has access to video chat or can instant message with a multiple of company recruiters. To be successful in a virtual forum, each candidate must have a working electronic device and stable internet connection.
Below are a few tips to improve a college student’s chance for successful participation in a virtual career fair:
a. Research the career fair’s participating companies
Many job seekers can experience burnout by trying to see every company representative at the virtual career fair. The college should list the participating employers on its career services’ website. To make the best use of your time, select the companies that interest you the most. You should review each company of interest’s website for its mission, values, location(s) and products/services. Make an effort to view each website’s entry-level employment vacancies under “Jobs” or “Career Opportunities.” Search for your specific major to look for job openings and their associated required education, responsibilities, prerequisite experience, employment type (full, part-time, internship, or summer job) and salary ranges. Also, conduct an online search on the company’s reputation. Use your research to compile a list of four to five companies of interest to visit in their virtual interview rooms.
b. Prepare and practice a 30-second Introduction
This is your chance to meet face-to-face with a recruiter and network. With a warm smile, introduce yourself, your major, university and your interest in joining the company’s team. In addition, ask a few relevant questions about the company. Your conversation with the recruiter should convey your extensive research of the company and potential value as a hire due to your knowledge, skills, and abilities gained from college classes, school projects, internships, work-study or part-time jobs. Pay attention to the recruiter’s interaction with you, which may communicate their interest and enthusiasm. College career fairs often are the start of the process for screening potential candidates, interviewing and hiring for recruiters. Use your initial introduction to make a great first impression.
c. Complete any college pre-applications or upload a digital resume
Initially, the college may require students to register online for scheduled time slots with recruiters at the virtual career fair. The college also may require students to upload a digital resume into a college database for recruiters to pre-screen appropriate college majors. Schedule a meeting with your college career services to review your resume. You want to ensure your resume will impress the recruiter and land an interview for the job you desire. Try to tailor individualized resumes for each of your targeted companies’ hiring needs. College career services may also offer mock interview practice software to prepare for the virtual career fair video chat format.
d. Obtain contact information from the hiring recruiters
Ask each company recruiter for contact information and the next step forward. Recruiters often do not offer jobs at career fairs. For example, the hiring manager/recruiter may instruct you to submit a digital application on the company’s website for specific job openings. Take the time to do it. This action shows you are interested in the company. If you get an interview with the recruiter and hiring manager follow-up with a thank you email to the recruiter for his/her time. This gesture also confirms the recruiter’s email address. You should follow-up after two weeks with another well-crafted, proofread email to indicate your continued interest in the company. Start early identifying at least three references that the application may require because it may take time to gather their contact information. Lastly, consider following the companies of interest on social media such as Facebook, Twitter, etc. to prepare for that interview callback.
e. Dress for success
You should wear appropriate professional clothing and have a neat appearance. Although the interaction is a virtual interview, professional attire presents an image of confidence, interest in the interview and a serious intent to make a good first impression. If unsure what constitutes professional clothing, Google “business professional/business casual attire” or consult with your college career services.
f. Use a virtual career fair as a tool in your networking toolbox
In addition to virtual career or job fairs, seek out job vacancy information from friends, family, past employers, professors, college career services, alumni databases and coworkers. An Undercover Recruiter article reported the top source-of-hires for employers came from employee referrals. While employee referrals represented 7% of submitted applications, companies used referrals as the basis for 40% of all hires (http://bit.ly/undercover_employeereferrals). Employee referrals are a significant factor in obtaining an interview with a company and possible employment. In addition to personal connections, join career/major specific clubs to connect with company representatives in other venues such as conferences, volunteer activities, corporate sponsored competitions and professional association events. Gather business cards and connect with networking contacts through LinkedIn. Participating in internships also provides work experience and potential employment opportunities.
Previously Published on LinkedIn
During this worldwide pandemic, college students and graduates are navigating the hiring labyrinth for employment. Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, college campuses across the nation coordinated career fairs in which students interacted face-to-face with company recruiters. Since the pandemic began, colleges have started to sponsor virtual career fairs that use online video platforms such as Zoom Video Chat and Microsoft Teams. Some inexperienced job seekers may not appreciate the advantages of attending virtual college career or job fairs. Virtual hiring events offer many benefits for hiring managers and potential hires. College sponsored virtual job fairs provide savings on travel, hotel and meals as well as exhibitor booth costs for recruiters. This savings is a very good benefit for smaller, unfamiliar companies who job-seeking applicants may not have considered. The virtual career fair also provides access to a diverse pool of current students, recent graduates and alumni candidates. College students can use the virtual career fair to learn about companies that are hiring, types of jobs they are hiring for and requirements for the positions. An added bonus is students can develop and grow their professional network and interaction skills. A 2020 CNBC.com article stated that career experts expect 80% of recruiting to occur virtually even after the pandemic is contained (http://bit.ly/cnbc_virtualcareer_fair). With planning and research, college students can use virtual career fairs to gather information about specific companies and network with hiring managers to find the job of their dreams.
A Rasmussen University blog article explained the virtual career fair process in which each recruiter operates within a virtual interview room (http://bit.ly/rasmussen_virtualcareer_fair). The recruiter can use the virtual room for a private session with a candidate or an open chat forum with several candidates. Each potential hire has access to video chat or can instant message with a multiple of company recruiters. To be successful in a virtual forum, each candidate must have a working electronic device and stable internet connection.
Below are a few tips to improve a college student’s chance for successful participation in a virtual career fair:
a. Research the career fair’s participating companies
Many job seekers can experience burnout by trying to see every company representative at the virtual career fair. The college should list the participating employers on its career services’ website. To make the best use of your time, select the companies that interest you the most. You should review each company of interest’s website for its mission, values, location(s) and products/services. Make an effort to view each website’s entry-level employment vacancies under “Jobs” or “Career Opportunities.” Search for your specific major to look for job openings and their associated required education, responsibilities, prerequisite experience, employment type (full, part-time, internship, or summer job) and salary ranges. Also, conduct an online search on the company’s reputation. Use your research to compile a list of four to five companies of interest to visit in their virtual interview rooms.
b. Prepare and practice a 30-second Introduction
This is your chance to meet face-to-face with a recruiter and network. With a warm smile, introduce yourself, your major, university and your interest in joining the company’s team. In addition, ask a few relevant questions about the company. Your conversation with the recruiter should convey your extensive research of the company and potential value as a hire due to your knowledge, skills, and abilities gained from college classes, school projects, internships, work-study or part-time jobs. Pay attention to the recruiter’s interaction with you, which may communicate their interest and enthusiasm. College career fairs often are the start of the process for screening potential candidates, interviewing and hiring for recruiters. Use your initial introduction to make a great first impression.
c. Complete any college pre-applications or upload a digital resume
Initially, the college may require students to register online for scheduled time slots with recruiters at the virtual career fair. The college also may require students to upload a digital resume into a college database for recruiters to pre-screen appropriate college majors. Schedule a meeting with your college career services to review your resume. You want to ensure your resume will impress the recruiter and land an interview for the job you desire. Try to tailor individualized resumes for each of your targeted companies’ hiring needs. College career services may also offer mock interview practice software to prepare for the virtual career fair video chat format.
d. Obtain contact information from the hiring recruiters
Ask each company recruiter for contact information and the next step forward. Recruiters often do not offer jobs at career fairs. For example, the hiring manager/recruiter may instruct you to submit a digital application on the company’s website for specific job openings. Take the time to do it. This action shows you are interested in the company. If you get an interview with the recruiter and hiring manager follow-up with a thank you email to the recruiter for his/her time. This gesture also confirms the recruiter’s email address. You should follow-up after two weeks with another well-crafted, proofread email to indicate your continued interest in the company. Start early identifying at least three references that the application may require because it may take time to gather their contact information. Lastly, consider following the companies of interest on social media such as Facebook, Twitter, etc. to prepare for that interview callback.
e. Dress for success
You should wear appropriate professional clothing and have a neat appearance. Although the interaction is a virtual interview, professional attire presents an image of confidence, interest in the interview and a serious intent to make a good first impression. If unsure what constitutes professional clothing, Google “business professional/business casual attire” or consult with your college career services.
f. Use a virtual career fair as a tool in your networking toolbox
In addition to virtual career or job fairs, seek out job vacancy information from friends, family, past employers, professors, college career services, alumni databases and coworkers. An Undercover Recruiter article reported the top source-of-hires for employers came from employee referrals. While employee referrals represented 7% of submitted applications, companies used referrals as the basis for 40% of all hires (http://bit.ly/undercover_employeereferrals). Employee referrals are a significant factor in obtaining an interview with a company and possible employment. In addition to personal connections, join career/major specific clubs to connect with company representatives in other venues such as conferences, volunteer activities, corporate sponsored competitions and professional association events. Gather business cards and connect with networking contacts through LinkedIn. Participating in internships also provides work experience and potential employment opportunities.
Typically, college students start looking for employment the semester before graduation. The search can start as start as early as your sophomore year. A college-sponsored virtual career fair is an excellent starting point to speak to career professionals, acquire networking associations, develop communications skills with employers and seek employment opportunities, including internships. Despite the nation’s growing economic recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic, the virtual career fair attendee must stand out from others to obtain employment in today’s market. To secure the career of your dreams focus on using virtual career fairs as one of your networking tools to make personal connections with hiring managers and recruiters. Remember, a well-executed plan for your employment search is much better than relying on luck.
Valarie R. Austin is the author of The Student’s Comprehensive Guide for College & Other Life Lessons. She has a wealth of knowledge on the subjects of career and college preparation. She also conducts career and college readiness workshops for high school students and parents. Check out her author’s pages on https://www.linkedin/in/valarie-r-austin, https://www.goodreads.com/valarie_r_austin and https://www.amazon.com/author/valarie_r_austin. A Youtube.com review of her book can found at https://youtu.be/xy_GSHlJsa0. This article was edited by Raffie Johnson. Copyright 2021, Vauboix Publishing LLC. (Article 4 of 5, spring 2021)
The Student's Comprehensive Guide For College & Other Life LessonsLa Guía Comprensiva del Estudiante para la Universidad & Otras Lecciones de Vida
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