By Sarah Hinnant
William Peace University requires all of the seniors to attend the ENCCA Career and Graduate School Fair in hopes to improve their networking skills. Career fairs may also open doors and help you find a career within a professional organization you may not think to look.
February 12 holds an excellent opportunity for me, along with many of the other seniors, to get our name out there in the working world. The fair is being held at the McKimmon Center in Raleigh, NC on Wednesday, February 12, 2014.
“Have a job search strategy. Know what they’re looking for. One method when looking for a job is attending these career fairs because there are companies that aren’t reaching out to you in other ways. There is a lot of value in the career fairs that William Peace University offers, one being meeting a large number of employers looking for entry-level college students. There are a lot of people in one place. This is an opportunity to improve your networking skills while working with career services to help you including 76 employers and graduate schools in one location looking for you. Hope to see you all there,” said Barbara Efird, Director of Career Services.
Career fairs are no longer just for the unemployed or people searching for jobs. Career fairs are important for everyone to attend because they are a great way to network with local businesses and professionals in your community. Keeping your options open is important when entering the playing field by maintaining local professional connections with businesses in the surrounding area. Close connections aren’t always jump-started by what you know, but by who you know as well.
Why are career fairs so important for college students? Students feel as if they stand in line just to talk to a company representative who then basically tells them to go apply on the website. College students often feel it is a waste of time to show up; however, it isn’t a waste of time at all. Many of our professors are instilling in us the proper tools to learn what we are in for so when we are ready, we have the tools to put our best foot forward and score an interview. But an interview is not what it’s all about.
“I am looking forward to the ENCCA Career Fair because I am eager to talk with Elon University about their Interactive and Social Media Graduate program, as well as Red Hat. In preparation for the career fair, I am updating my resume, updating my professional attire and researching the programs,” said Olivia Worsham, a William Peace University senior.
Have plenty of updated resumes.
That is the first tip I have heard by many professionals.
The upcoming ENCCA Career and Graduate School Fair is a general event with many local companies from many different professional backgrounds. By attending this career fair is places a face to your resume and provides an opportunity to keep all of your options open, especially in such a readily changing job market.
Hope to see you all there!