KCC Student Career Spotlight: So You Attended the Job Fair, Now What?

You just attended the job fair at school and you’re probably wondering what your next steps are. These tips would help you go through the process of speaking with employers after a job fair.

1. Keep your information organized

Assuming you networked with multiple different employers, it’s best to keep all the names and contacts of everyone you spoke to organized and accessible. Be sure to include their business card information and any notes you may have taken down about your discussion or even write new notes about what you learnt.

2. Follow-up with employers promptly

The best thing to do right after a job fair is to follow up within 24 hours. Send a simple formal thank you email that has proper grammar and is well written. If you are one of the first emails in the employer's inbox, you'll have a better chance of getting a reply that’s open for more discussion. If you had a really good conversation, be sure to mention bits of it in your follow-up email. This also encourages a connection that could be retained by occasional contact.

3. Keep your options open

While you are following up with the employers you met at a job fair, you should also keep your options open and continue your job search. Don't count your chickens before they hatch and assume that you will get an offer from one of them. Keep applying to other jobs that match your skills and goals, as weel as continue to attend other job fairs and other networking events.

4. Make necessary updates to your resume

Make any necessary changes if you receive a resume critique at the job fair from the job fair hosts/career center. You should also keep your resume and portfolio up to date.

5. Continue practicing your interviewing skills

Continue to practice your interviewing skills because you can never get too much practice. This helps you nail your interview and elevator pitch perfectly for any other opportunities!

6. Reflect on your experience at the job fair

It is very important to reflect on yourself on how you did so you can prepare and make improvements at the next job fair.

When self-reflecting, ask yourself these questions: