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How career fairs for students work in international universities

How career fairs for students work in international universities

If you are an international student, you probably plan to stay on in the host country after graduation and start a career. But, in the US, particularly, because of the increasingly restrictive work-visa rules, employers might be hesitant to hire you. They fear your work-authorization application will be rejected or they may have to spend higher amounts on your work visa.

These concerns are justified. Recruiting companies are also wary that you might not fit in with the local corporate culture.

Usually, firms only have your CV to go by to gauge your suitability as a candidate. This is where career fairs help. Companies can meet and speak to you. They may not readily find a solution to visa problems, but they can at least convince themselves of your suitability.

However, international students often don’t show much confidence in career fairs because they know that companies may not hire them because of the visa problems. But, at fairs, there may be corporates willing to sponsor candidates or offer internships. There are also other ways by which candidates can make fairs work for them.
 

How to make career fairs work for you

First, as an international student, you will be able to meet other international students at fairs and keep in touch with them to know how they are faring with their job search.

Second, while everyone is queuing in front of the stalls of top companies, you can go to the stalls of lesser-known companies, which may give you a closer look. You can get tips from them about what makes them interview an international candidate for a position, what makes them recruit an international student, and what turns them off.

Third, you can offer your services in an area that a company is focusing on, such as expanding in your home country or another emerging market. You will be a more attractive candidate to it than a hotshot MBA looking for a full-time job or sponsorship. Of course, you should go to the stall of every company that offers to sponsor.

Fourth, when you approach companies with a policy against sponsoring, ask if they make exceptions to exceptional candidates. They may say no, but it could be worth a shot. Before attending a career fair, international students should know their visa status and find out which jobs they are eligible for.

Fifth, stress your global mobility. Say you are willing to work in Asia or Africa. You may later be given a chance to work in the US or UK, if that’s your goal.
 

Using university career fairs to improve your candidature

 

Interactions

Interacting with representatives of employers is not every student’s cup of tea. Many find themselves tongue-tied from a fear that they may fail to impress employers or from a feeling of anxiety. Career fairs are an ideal practice ground to improve your interactions.

If you are the anxious or nervous type, you may want to prepare an introduction of your educational/professional background and interests. If you are targeting a particular company, it may be a good idea to try out your preparation level at another company’s stall first.

Practice a 60-second “elevator pitch,” or a “commercial” that advertises yourself to an employer. Speak clearly and concisely, as you won’t have much time. Anticipate questions and be ready with answers. Focus on your skills and experience and not on your visa status.

At large fairs, plan to meet about ten companies, five of them your priority companies. But you must first practice your personal pitch at the five non-priority companies on your list. Leave out companies that say they hire only citizens or permanent residents.

At career fairs, you get to meet many potential employers, which helps you overcome apprehensions. You can hope to meet company representatives at various levels, from senior management and HR personnel to fresh recruits.

Students, particularly those from overseas, can also learn the local etiquette and more about various cultures. Career fairs, even when they do not give immediate positive results, can be a good practice ground for students.
 

Information

A company’s stall at a fair provides an opportunity to students to understand job and career opportunities available with the organization. You cannot find out about every position from company websites, and additional information may be available at the stalls. Students can also understand a company’s culture by meeting its representatives, again, something that may not be clear on websites.

Additionally, international students could research and find out whether the company you are speaking to has branch offices in your home country.

Don’t be shy to ask questions. Do your research about the position you are aiming for and ask questions about the role and responsibilities, promotions and other prospects. But never yield to the temptation to show off by asking complex questions. Read MBA Fair Tips: Questions to avoid at information sessions
 

Networking

Out in the open meeting people, employers and recruiters are not the same severe people you see at office desks. They mingle and are more open to talking freely to visitors. Students can use this opportunity to connect with them.

International students may even get to form networks with recruiters familiar with their native lands and find out how they can snag jobs in the host country. All this may not be possible to achieve online.
 

Seminars, workshops

Do you have a sneaking feeling that there’s something wrong with your resume but can’t put a finger on it. You may be too diffident to ask your busy professor to go through it. At fairs, you can participate in resume, interview skills, and etiquette seminars and workshops. You may even be able to learn how to refine your job searches online. Some fairs may require you to register for these events.
 

Internships

Find out whether companies at the fair are offering internships. If you are lucky, you may be able to bag a role that will give you a chance to familiarize yourself with an organization and its work culture. You may even be able to decide on a career.

If you speak well and come across as a potential candidate, recruiters may offer to hold interviews at the fairs themselves. This is a quick approach compared to the usual procedure of applying for a position and waiting to hear good news.

Companies don’t plan to hire hundreds of students at job fairs. But they surely are there to spot potential candidates. You should catch their eye in the limited time available. Go prepared and try to make a great impression.
 

 

External Career Fairs

Career fairs university USA McDonough School of Business does not host its independent career fairs. Instead, it relies on similar events managed by external companies that manage career fairs.

MBA Crystal Ball got in touch with Diana Banks, associate director, MBA Career Center, Georgetown University McDonough School of Business to learn more about how career fairs work at Georgetown McDonough. Here’s what she shared.
 
How career fairs work at Georgetown McDonough

We primarily leverage external MBA Career Fairs, held by partner organizations, to help our students identify opportunities to pursue their career objectives.

The majority of these Career Fairs, which take place in the fall, attract a core group of corporations and institutions interested in MBA’s and are attended by approximately 20% of our class depending upon the conference location.

The primary objective of a student participating in a Career Fair is to secure a summer internship or full time offer of employment that aligns with their pursuit of an MBA.

What should students know

Career Fairs tend to promote and offer positions that require advance education and result in upward career trajectory.

Employers tend to have a higher expectation of the knowledge, skill set and professional demeanor of individuals attending Career Fairs.

Meeting this expectation requires a considerable amount of advance preparation.

How should students prepare themselves

Students should begin by aligning their list of target companies with the firms attending the Career Fair.

Knowledge of the opportunities within those target companies will help inform their questions and guide their initial interaction with employer representatives.

Our students are encouraged to introduce their benefit proposition in a succinct, concise manner that helps recruiters quickly understand the value they bring to the firm.

What to expect from the fair

Students attending fairs should expect to meet many new people, expand their network, and learn about a diverse set of companies; it will be a hectic, fast-paced, and potentially frustrating day, so advance planning is critical.

Students should use the fair as an opportunity to better understand what companies are looking for in candidates and what skills are critical for their dream roles.

Career Fairs are a valuable opportunity to hone networking skills and gain practice in articulating their value to a prospective employer. It may also be the path that leads to their next career!

 

The best foot forward

 

Preparation

Estimate how much time the job fair will take you. Do an online research about the companies you want to explore. Learn about their products/services. Scan newspapers/portals for any recent news about the companies.

Choose business attire. Keep in mind that you will be judged quickly at a fair, so good grooming is important. Wear comfortable shoes.

Try not to carry a heavy backpack. Prefer a portfolio or briefcase.
 

At the fair

Arrive in the first hour when the crowd is usually sparse. If you have company preferences, get a floor plan and chalk out a route through the fair.

Turn your cellphone off to avoid interruptions.

Approach each stall by yourself and not with your friend or group. This would indicate confidence. But if you are an incurable introvert, go with a friend who is by nature sociable.

Smile, make eye contact, and give a firm handshake.

Be ready with your questions about the recruitment process and the skills sought.

Anticipate questions. Be ready with answers. But don’t take too much of the recruiter’s time.

Carry copies of your CV. Be sure to collect recruiters’ business cards. Make short notes of any positive feedback.

Respect employers’ materials such as brochures on offer to students. Take just one.
 

Follow-up

After the fair, get in touch with the company representatives you spoke to.

Send thank-you notes, referring to the fair date and venue.

If you make notes, you can even refer to your conversation. Include a copy of your resume.
 

Career fair vs job fair

Keep in mind that the terms “career fair” and “job fair” are not always interchangeable. Some universities conduct career fairs in which companies participate not because they have immediate job openings but because they want to promote their brands on campus. Companies use fairs at international universities to provide information about careers and their recruitment processes.

On the other hand, job fairs are attended by recruiters who are looking to fill positions immediately. A recruitment organization or a company may conduct a job fair to recruit for one type of position. Universities usually organize job fairs involving companies looking to recruit for various positions, many of them at junior levels. Not all make a distinction between the terms.
 

General fairs vs specialist fairs

If you are a fresh graduate who has not set eyes on a career in a particular industry, you should focus on general fairs. At these fairs, companies look to hire candidates fresh out of college with degrees in a variety of subjects.

If you have decided on an industry or a specialist career, you can attend specialist career fairs. Candidates across the board, from young lawyers to commerce and economics graduates, can hope to be recruited.
 

Virtual job fairs

Companies and universities also conduct job fairs online to connect with potential candidates. Chat rooms, teleconferencing, webinars, and webcasts are used. Job seekers send their resumes, and employers match positions with them.

Job-fair websites may have only links to the websites of companies. Some may have “booths” with listings about their products and job openings. Among the main advantages are that virtual fairs are more convenient to attend and may help limit biases caused by appearances and first impressions.

Also read:
How recruitment works at the top international business schools
 
References: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12


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Sameer Kamat
About Sameer Kamat
Founder of MBA Crystal Ball. Author of Beyond The MBA Hype & Business Doctors. Here's more about me. Follow me on: Instagram | Linkedin | Youtube

7 thoughts on “How career fairs for students work in international universities”

  1. hello sir, i have done my M.com in 2017 and after that i have worked in steel pipes & tubes mfg. unit around 11 months as a trainee under accounts dept.alongwith that i have joined distance learning programme for MBA from ICFAI Univ. after resigning from the mfg. unit of pipe industry then i have joined a textile industry and here i am working on FI Module of SAP……… but now I’m worried about my career as many persons of my same feild told me that in accounts have low growth if you don’t have any professional degree. thus now I’m thinking for joining a regular MBA college where i can enhance my communication as well as may be it can boost my salary too. I’m too much confused as i am already doing a MBA programme through distance learning. Is it right decision to join regular MBA Further after an experience of atleast 2 years in this textile industry unit.

    Reply
  2. Hello I have done MBA in Marketing and operation specialisation with back ground as BE- Electronics and Communication Engineering. Also I am a little bit of Computer Hardware support experience with technical support. I am not familiar with any programming also I am not interested in the same. I would like to have something related to hardware industry or electronics,also I am interested in analytics a bit . Please suggest me a suitable job considering above and my MBA Specialisation.

    Thankyou.

    Reply
  3. I am currently working as an Air traffic controller.
    I would like to know which distance MBA specialisation to pursue if I want to upgrade to management positions at various airlines.

    Reply
  4. I just completed my b.com computers now I want to do MBA so which is the better course for me to do further can u plz suggest better for me

    Reply
  5. Hello.. I am medical doctor.. Want to join postgraduate Course in nutrition or any other course which is valuable in Canada in terms of earning.also want a course which makes easy way to get PR. Any suggestion?thank u

    Reply
  6. I have done my B.Tech in the stream of Computer science in June 2016. And currently working in a IT company. I wanted to pursue MBA in Operations(Logistics and Supply chain management) in Canada. For this I consulted 2 or 3 Visa consultancies. They were saying “get visa stamping to Canada by joining IT related courses in first year and then move to MBA in operations next year”.
    my queries are:
    1. Is it possible to move to other courses(MBA in Operations) in 2nd year?
    2. Does this effect my career in MBA operations?

    Or else
    please suggest best ways…

    Thanks

    Reply
  7. @Yash: You will need more experience before you can apply to full-time international MBA programs. For now, focus on completing the distance MBA you’ve started and try to gain a variety of experience in the current role (if possible). After a few years, you can re-evaluate your need for a regular MBA.

    @Vijay: The technology industry offers a range of roles that aren’t related to highly technical skills. However, you would need to understand the basics of how the products (your company sells) work and the business impact of using them. There are also roles in finance, operations, HR where you don’t need to have a technical background.

    @Akanksha: I don’t know if airline companies value distance MBA programs. My guess is they have enough full-time MBA applicants to choose from. Make sure you understand what you’re signing up for, before you take the plunge.

    @Yogitha: Watch this video. It’s about what to do after graduation: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GL0WWt1FYM4

    @Asif: It might be a better idea to focus on one – education or PR – rather than mixing the two.

    @Rajesh: Sorry, but I don’t like the shady ideas those visa consultants are suggesting. It’s because of people like these and a few of their desperate clients who get carried away by such ‘creative’ advice, that Indian professionals get a bad name globally. If the plan blows up in your face, those visa consultants aren’t going to offer their shoulder for you to cry on.
    Instead of trying to find loopholes in the country that’s opening its doors to you, respect their rules and find legit options to explore. If an MBA is what you are interested in, go for an MBA directly. Canada hosts many good business schools. And please stop looking for jugaads (workarounds) where they aren’t warranted.

    Reply

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