Career Fair Recap

 

In honor of the winter career fair today, during the fall semester, I went to the career fair and study abroad fair, and it was very intimidating.

That morning, I had planned to go to the study abroad fair to gather information about studying abroad for the TREX research paper and to get a professional headshot. Additionally, I prepared to attend the career fair. I dressed in professional business wear and looked through the companies that were attending. I also made copies of my resume to bring because that was what many students recommended.

When I arrived at the career fair, there were tables and tables of employers everywhere. Many students were also dressed professionally and were talking with the employers. When you first arrived at the King Horn field house, you checked in at the table by the door and received your name tag. It had your name and major on it, which was super helpful when talking with employers, because they did not have to ask you what you were studying. They also handed you a list of all the companies, where their tables were and what kind of students they were looking for. This was most helpful for students who were looking for specific companies, time conscious or both.

The room was very overwhelming and intimidating to someone who had only attended the small high school geared career fairs. I started small, by visiting the study abroad fair on the far side of the room. There, I was able to learn about different types of study abroad programs and the many universities around the world that taught classes in English. I also learned about the multiple kinds of travel abroad programs offered by Ohio Northern University, such as service, academic or even small faculty-led trips and the different trip lengths.

After talking with study abroad tables, I felt ready to go to the career fair. I went up to the first booth I saw that had no one talking to them just to get started, because I was so nervous. After, I kept looking for tables where there was no line of students. I found that most of the tables were looking for engineers or accountants, but I had a good time learning about different companies. I even got a few business cards so that I could check their listings later to see if they had any marketing positions open in the future. I also talked to a few graduate college tables where I learned a lot of graduate colleges recommend getting some field experience before going on to earn a master’s degree.

Career fairs sound quite intimidating at first, but honestly, once I went in and got over my initial nervousness, I learned a lot and had a good time.