U career fair Thursday is state's biggest

Campus Connect scours student unions, lecture halls and dorms for the crucial and quirky stories that make colleges and universities special. Share what you’re up to on a Friday night, learning (or not) in that lecture - and what you're looking for in a school search as a new student. Higher education reporter Jenna Ross will keep you informed.

U career fair Thursday is state's biggest

Posted by: Jenna Ross Updated: February 21, 2012 - 2:24 PM

0
comments
print

Tweet
share

email
Email share

your name

your email

recipients email

+ add a comment add a comment

Students are ironing their suits and sprucing up their resumes in preparation for this year's Minnesota Job and Internship Fair on Thursday.

More than 2,500 students are expected to attend the career fair, open to University of Minnesota students attending all the system's campuses, as well as recent alumni.

About 215 employers are set to participate -- more than last year or the year before, but not as many as four or five years ago, said Paul Timmins, career services director at the U’s College of Liberal Arts.

"The number of employers does track pretty closely with the general perceptions of the economy," he said. "It's a small indication that we're headed in the right direction."

Timmins shared a few tips about how to prepare:

"Have a plan in mind. Spend a little time looking at the list of registered employers. The most focused students are the ones who have the best experience."
"Practice your elevator speech -- out loud. Talk to the mirror. Talk to yourself in the car. Your 60-second pitch should introduce yourself, what you're studying, what you're interested in for a career, your key skills."
"Do the little things to be professional. Dress professionally. Have your resume ready."
"Have the right expectations. Any job or career fair is, at its heart, about networking. You're not going to walk out with a job or internship, but you will walk out with connections... for when you follow up later."