Preparing for a career fair is extremely important regardless of your career path. There are a few words of advice I have after going through career fairs from both ends: a student looking for an internship/full time position and as a representative of a firm. As a student, there are three approaches to a career fair: Practice, seeking an internship, or seeking a full-time position.
Practice
These are the students just starting their 4-5 years are architectural school, and may not be looking for an actual internship quite yet. Which most individuals will start out this way, but it is still good to attend a career fair. It is a great way to see what types of firms attend, learn more about the profession, and ultimately practice speaking and presenting yourself.
For “practice”, you don’t need to have a portfolio but think around bringing a small portfolio, or even an 11×17 page of the current project you are working on. That way you can get practice in explaining you work. Or even better ask the professional opinion about the project. They may have some interesting ideas for you to explain before your next studio class.
Advice:
- Do research on the firms. Have an idea of who is going to be there and some firms you definitely want to meet.
- Go back to the same firms every year. It will help get an idea of the culture of the firm as well as if the same representatives come they may recognize you.
- Prepare some questions you want to know. Helps with conversation and will help you learn more about the firm or the profession
- Prepare some kind of work to show them even if it’s small. Again, it’s about practice.
- Dress appropriately. I don’t feel like for this category you need to wear a full suit, but I’d recommend getting out of your worn-out jean, tennis shoes, and a t shirt. Suggestion:
- dress shoes, clean jeans/khakies, and a golf shirt
- boots/heels, clean jeans/work pants, and a nice top
Seeking an Internship:
Looking for an internship I would take as serious as looking for a full-time position. Be honest with the representatives and ask them even if they are hiring. I have been to several fairs as a student where the firm is not hiring at all, or do not hiring summer interns. You never know what they are looking for so just ask. You need to come prepared. Know which firms are going to be there, who you are interested, and have materials to share. I would recommend having an up to date resume, portfolio, dress appropriately, and be prepared with questions to ask. And once again use this as practice for looking for a job post-graduation.
Advice:
- Do research on the firms. Have an idea of who is going to be there and some firms you want to meet.
- Prepare some questions you want to know. Helps with conversation and will help you learn more about the firm or the profession.
- Prepare some kind of portfolio or work to show. It helps to leave an impression on what you can do beyond what words on a resume can say.
- Think about things firms can take with them. It is obvious to have multiple copies of your resume to pass out but also think about some design take away. Even if it is as simple is stapling another piece of paper to your resume that is a sample of your recent work in school.
- Dress for the future job you want. I’d recommend dressing like you are going on an interview. Maybe not a full suit but a nice blazer or suit jacket may be the key piece you need to give you the confidence when walking around.
- Walk around alone. You can take breaks to talk with friends but don’t let anyone try to follow you around if you want a job.
Seeking for first full-time job
Be prepared! Generally, all the advice above holds true for this category as well except that you want to be at your best. Being able to practice at other career fairs can really help your confidence at this point. You can find what has worked for you and what type of materials you need with you to succeed. This is also the category where you want to find out more about their office culture alongside the work they do.
Advice:
- Do your research of the firms. Do not go to your top 5 firms when you first get to the fair. Practice with other firms first.
- Take the time the days/weeks before a career fair to prepare the materials you are going to bring. (Resume, portfolio, take away materials, etc)
- Prepare some questions you want to know. Helps with conversation and will help you learn more about the firm. At this point this is not some firm you are going to be working for just the summer, this is hopefully a firm you can be with for at least few years.
- Dress to impress. This may be the time you bring out your full suit and take the time to get a haircut beforehand.
- Go alone! Talk to your friends afterwards.
What NOT to do:
- Don’t walk around in a group. No matter what approach category you fall under, it is important to go around solo. I have seen a tendency for student clusters walking around trying to stop at different tables. If you aren’t looking for a job and have more of a shy personality it may be good to go around with someone a little more extroverted. But going around with more than one other person will not help you practice. If you are looking for an internship or a full-time job you must go around by yourself. That is the only way from a firm representative standpoint can really get an understanding of who you are
- Don’t go to your top choice first. Especially if you are nervous about walking around a career fair start out talking to a firm you are not interested in due to location. If you select a firm that does the type of work you enjoy but is not in the location you want to be in is GREAT practice for the firms you really like.
Written by Katelyn Rossier