Career fairs are very important. Every now and then, hundreds of thousands of students graduate from various tertiary institutions in Ghana. The dream of every graduate is to join the workforce after completion. There is no point if at the end of your tertiary education you still need to depend on your parents or others.
But the real question is, as a fresh graduate how do you make sure you stand out in the midst of the crowd? There are over five thousand graduates pouring into the shrinking job market every year.
As a human resource and recruitment company, our vision is to make sure we connect both young graduates and experienced professionals to opportunities in Ghana.
One way of doing this is by collaborating with top companies and organizing career events like jobs fairs, webinars, among others to connect them to professionals ready to work.
Career fairs are suitable grounds for job seekers to get relevant information and also connect one-on-one with recruiters. However, getting the best out of any career fair program demands personal commitment from the part of the job seeker.
Note that it is one thing to attend a career/job fair, and another thing to be able to maximize the event.
Here ere are seven tips to help you get the best out of career/job fair events.
1. Sign Up For The Career Fair
It is important to know that your journey to making use of any career fair begins by registering for the event. Registration is important because it helps you to put the event in your plans. Apart from that the host organization(s) usually send reminders at regular intervals either via email, SMS or any other suitable channel to keep registered attendees in remembrance. So always make it a point to sign up for career events.
2. Research The Companies in Attendance And Go To The Event Prepared
In career fairs, different employers/companies are usually in attendance. This creates the opportunity for employers to interact with job seekers and possibly help them to find solutions to their mind-bordering issues. Sometimes, employers may even have vacant roles looking for suitable candidates to hire. So as a job seeker, it is good to know the value of the event you have registered for and prepare accordingly.
Let me say emphatically that never make a mistake by going to a career/job fair event without a soft copy of your CV or resume. Have it on either your phone, tablet or even computer. If possible, take a hard copy alongside. This is because during the event, an employer can ask you to send them your CV/resume for their consideration and it would not appear pleasant to say I don’t have it at that moment. Saying I don’t have it here simply tells the employer that you are not a serious person.
3. Be Ready To Learn, Unlearn, And Relearn
Career fairs are good avenues to get first-hand information from people that matter most as far as the labour market is concerned. It is therefore important to go to the event with your mind prepared to listen attentively as presentations are being made. Do not go there with prejudice but rather be open-minded.
Be ready to unlearn your own ideologies of how things should be and hear from the horse’s own mouth. Your opinion can be as good as Jesus Christ healing the sick, but it is the employers who know what works best for them.
4. Ask Relevant Questions
Coming to the career fair prepared will mean that you may have questions looking for answers as a job seeker. Make sure you don’t feel shy to ask all the questions on your heart. It is an error to walk away with unanswered questions while you have the opportunity. Being informed as a job seeker will save you lots of time and energy by helping you to avoid pretty mistakes in your job search.
5. Jot Down Relevant Notes
Yes, it is good to listen attentively in job fairs like these, but it is important to know that you cannot keep everything in your mind for a long time. It is easy for you to think you won’t forget what is being said, but trust me, it would not take longer than a week to start forgetting what you have heard. So it is important to put down some salient points for future reference and action.
6. Have One-On-One With Employers/Recruiters
Many times, immediately after the job fair, people are quick to leave the premises which is not really commendable. Do not behave as if you have a baby to breastfeed. Make sure you spend some time with employers so you can start relevant conversations which will help you to build life-time networks. However, do not overstay your welcome so that other job seekers can have the chance to also interact with the employers. Remember to get the contact details of employers so that you can follow up later.
7. Make Practical Applications
This point is extremely important even though it came last. That is because if you don’t make practical applications of what you have learnt, then it would have been better if you didn’t attend the career fair at all. For instance, the event may challenge you to take personal development seriously. Your practical application could start by taking up free online courses in your area of interest. It is time for action backed by personal commitment and not the time for procrastination. Make a feasible plan for yourself. Start as early as possible before you will begin to lose interest in it.
Conclusion
Never allow any career fair event to slip you by as a job seeker once you have the opportunity. More importantly, be guided by the above tips to help you get the best from career events.
If you are a young graduate or student who wants to have a competitive edge over your counterparts in your job search, then the “Invest for jobs Career Fair X” is surely the best place to be. The event aims at sensitizing, educating and creating networking opportunities for students and young graduates in Ghana. You will discover the world of work and the job opportunities in the Ghanaian labour market.
Date: Friday, 12th November 2021
Time: 9:00am – 2:00pm
Venue: University of Professional Studies Accra
Don’t wait any longer, register now
This article is in partnership with Invest for Jobs. An initiative of the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development, and has partnered with Ghana’s number one online recruitment platform, Jobberman Ghana. This partnership is aimed at contributing to the special initiative’s objective of improving economic conditions in selected locations and industry sectors in Ghana, as well as promoting investment for jobs.
