Many students struggle to find internships and job opportunities after college; but, if students attend university career fairs, they just might find what they are looking for. 

College career fairs are specifically designed to aid students in exploring job opportunities. At this event, students and employers are able to interact in-person before a formal interview. 

Networking 

Simply sending in your resume to ads online won’t get you very far when job hunting. More times than not, getting a successful job is all about networking. 

Most jobs aren’t posted online, according to career coach Matt Youngquist. 

“At least 70%, if not 80%, of jobs are not published, and yet most people – they are spending 70% or 80% of their time surfing the net versus getting out there,” said Youngquist. 

Resume clean-up 

Many times at career fairs, students can have their resume reviewed by a professional.

At a career fair, your resume is your business card. It needs to be clean, to the point, have no grammatical errors and be easy to understand. If you are getting frustrated about never reaching the interview stage of job hunting, try looking over your resume again. You might have made a simple mistake on your resume. 

Workshops/seminars 

Generally, career fairs include access to free workshops and/or seminars for students to take advantage of. 

Workshops often give students the opportunity to practice their interview skills and receive advice from professionals. 

Seminars can provide students with vast amounts of information about the professional world, such as how to make small talk with an employer, how to perfect your resume, market your skills and answer standard interview questions.

Interview practice 

Attending a career fair is a prime opportunity for students to practice their interview skills. They will have the chance to approach employers. It might be nerve-racking at first, but the more times you do speak to employers, the less nervous you become. 

Students will receive hands-on practice introducing themselves to an employer, answering and asking questions, all critical skills when it comes to finding a job. 

Pro-tip: Always greet everyone in the business or professional world with a firm handshake. 

It’s free 

It costs students nothing but their time to attend a career fair. All of these benefits are free of charge, so why wouldn’t you want to attend? 

Career fairs are the place where students can get their foot in the door of the professional world. 

Writing a resume, networking and preparing for interviews are new skills for students, so it is OK to make mistakes; this is the opportunity to practice. 

Once students graduate and enter the “real world” they won’t have access to career services, so the skills they learn now are the ones they will use for the rest of their professional lives. 

Northern Illinois University is set to hold an all-majors career fair from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. on Oct. 4 at the Convocation Center. 

All students should plan to devote at least an hour at the fair. Students can see a list of employers attending and what majors they are looking for on Huskies Get Hired.