Perfect for students in search of jobs and internships, a plethora of career events will be held over the next few weeks at Wright State University.
Kicking off the career events is How to Work a Career Fair – Hosted by Reynolds and Reynolds on Oct. 8. The event will include a workshop presented by Senior Corporate Recruiter for Reynolds and Reynolds Jennifer Moore; this is a great opportunity to hear from a recruiter’s perspective.
“You don’t know all the career opportunities that are at a company just by the name; there are places that students may not even think they could apply at that have really cool opportunities in their career field,” said Twila Murray, career consultant for the Raj Soin College of Business.
Other important career events to attend are the Career Fair on Oct. 15 and the Wright-Patterson Air Force Base Careers Event presented by The College of Liberal Arts and the Center for Liberal Arts Student Success on Oct. 23.
“Arrive early,” said Moore. “There could be lines for the companies you want to speak with, so getting there late could limit the number of companies you can visit.”
Another topic to be covered is how to dress. “Make a great first impression. No matter the role you are looking for, dressing professionally will help make that good first impression,” said Moore.
One of the most important ways to prepare for a career fair is to do your research on the companies that will be attending. Handshake, Wright State’s career management system, is a great resource for researching job or internship opportunities.
“[Doing research] will help you find out which companies have positions that might interest you and give you an idea of how many resumes to bring [as well as] help you to feel more confident when speaking to the employers,” said Moore.
Recruiters want to see that students are knowledgeable and ready to engage.
“Nothing impresses recruiters more than being able to talk about what they do, know what they’re all about, [express] why you’re excited about working with them and how your skills, experience and education connect with them,” said Wayne Stark, career consultant for the College of Liberal Arts.
Whether you are a student who is confident in their career path and are looking for a job or are still up in the air, Moore emphasizes the opportunities that come from attending a career fair. They are also great for freshmen to find internships.
“If you are not quite ready for a job, it can also be a good time to practice for future events, see what opportunities and companies might be out there, maybe find a part-time job or just to get in front of the employers so they remember you when you are ready for that full-time job or internship,” said Moore.
Stark emphasizes the need to visit career services, see a career consultant or counselor and take advantage of workshops.
In preparing for a career fair, students should review their resume and have a career professional look it over before the event.
“[Students should] make sure they have an excellent resume prepared and reviewed by one of us. That resume [should] focus on accomplishments and results, utilize powerful verbs and should be tailored to the particular opportunities they want to focus on at the career fair,” said Stark.
An important part of making a good impression on recruiters is to get contact information and record who you talk to.
“This is one of the most important pieces for students to remember: follow-up [with a recruiter] and thank them for their time,” said Stark. “After the email, send a thank you card with a hand-written note.”
Whether a student has a resume or not, everyone is encouraged to attend.
“Many of these organizations have internships available if undergrads want to [gain] experience. If you put in the effort to go to a career fair, you can still put a resume together based on high school experiences, volunteerism and class projects,” said Stark.
Aside from career events, it is important for students to be aware of emails they receive from members of their college.
“Look [for] and get to know the career people and recognize their names. Get to know the career emails because there will be a workshop, an event, a program, a career fair, a job opportunity, an internship possibility and if you aren’t looking at those, you’re going to miss that,” said Stark.
