This upcoming Monday, March 9th, Morton Consulting along with 85 other employers will be participating in Richmond’s Premier Professional Job Fair, the RVA Career Expo. This is an event hosted by the Richmond Chapter of the Virginia Tech Alumni Association in partnership with Career Prospectors and JAM. The event will be located at The Cultural Arts Center at Glen Allen at 2880 Mountain Road, Glen Allen, VA 23060. The proceeds from this event go to benefit Virginia Tech Scholarships through the Richmond Chapter who is awarding several annually. The job fair is scheduled to last from 10:00am to 2:00pm, so mark your calendars and come see the Morton Consulting Team.
The RVA Career Expo has grown every year since it started and with over 600 job seekers registered to attend on Monday, this event should be even larger than it has been in years past. If you are actively seeking a new career, please consider registering or attending this event on Monday. For those that are seeking new job opportunities, Job Fairs are great events to learn, network, and to land a job. Here are 10 tips for any Job Seeker to focus on in preparation for a Job Fair:
- Research – know the details of the job fair and plan accordingly. Spend time to learn more about each company attending the event so you can prepare for a successful experience.
- Resume – bring enough copies of your resume to reach each employer of interest. Consider printing resumes on higher quality paper and bringing other items such as a portfolio, references or work samples.
- Practice and Prepare – make sure you are ready to sell yourself in 30 seconds with each employer. Do you have a 30 second commercial prepared? Dress professionally and be ready to make a great first impression.
- Be Prepared to Interview – treat each visit to employer booth’s as an interview. Maintain eye contact, be enthusiastic, and be prepared to answer any questions on the value you could add to each employer.
- Strategy – create a strategy before you arrive to the job fair. With 86 total employers and only 4 hours of time, you should arrive early and be ready. Check out the map of participating employers online.
- Take Notes – while waiting in line to meet the next employer, jot down any notes from the conversation with the previous employer. These could prove to be beneficial come interview time.
- Next Steps – work to establish next steps with each prospective employer and don’t be afraid to ask if you can follow up.
- Network – building a strong network is key to advancing your career over time, so use the time while at the job fair to meet others and to connect. Don’t forget to follow up with LinkedIn connections.
- Don’t – dress casual, talk on your cell phone, interrupt others, hand out crumpled resumes, and make commitments you can’t meet.
- Follow Up – follow up on all job opportunities you are interested in after the job fair. Don’t be afraid to send out thank you notes to those prospective employers where the opportunity for your situation is the greatest.
The team at Morton Consulting hopes these 10 Tips for Job Fairs will benefit your experience at the RVA Career Expo and for any other future Job Fairs. We are excited to see you and meet some great prospects on Monday!
David Borovatz
Director of Operations
Morton Consulting