Your guide to making the most of events and fairs
Careers fairs, employer and alumni events are a great way to find out about opportunities for internships, placements and graduate roles as well as starting to build relationships and network with prospective employers.
These pages are intended to help you:
- Understand the importance of these events, their value and what they involve.
- Think about how to prepare to make the most of the experience and to support your career research and job search.
- Consider how to make a good and lasting impression when speaking to others.
- Plan what action you might take following the event to consolidate insights and connections.
How do I find out about them?
You will find a range of employer events, alumni panels and career networking fairs advertised on Handshake. These events will either be in person or virtual through platforms such as Zoom or ‘Go-To’ Webinar. It is wise to regularly visit Handshake, so you don’t miss promoted opportunities. It is also worth asking academic contacts in your department if they too are aware of good networking opportunities.
What to expect from these events
Attending fairs and employer events can be overwhelming, trepidatious or exciting. Much depends on your expectations. With good preparation events can be fun and rewarding.
Target Jobs has a handy guide for Navigating Virtual Careers Fairs which outlines the difference between virtual and in-person fairs.
Why attend
Employer events and fairs provide you with an opportunity to find out about different sectors and occupations. It’s a real chance to show your curiosity and interest and ask questions to those in a role or working for an organisation you are either interested in or keen to learn more about. You have opportunity to speak with company representatives such as alumni and recent graduate hires to inform your knowledge about making an application and career roles.
Employers value these events too as a chance to talk informally to students and to build a relationship with keen interested applicants. It provides them with a chance to,
- Show the best of their vacancies / internships and placements
- Help you to understand more about the roles they have available in their organisation.
- Speak about what they are looking for from applicants and how you could evidence your suitability for the role.
- Answer any questions and offer hints and tips about application processes.
A small investment in time preparing for an event could result in an invaluable contact or a rich source of information. Do your research. Check in advance who is attending and prioritise who you might wish to speak with. Familiarise yourself with what an organisation offers and what they might be seeking from new recruits. You may find it useful to reference our Researching employers / sector page e.g. use the employer’s website to search for their mission statement, strategy or annual reports. Try using search criteria ‘About_careers_jobs’.
Here are other top tips to help you,
- Explore the social media output of target organisations and secondary sources such as industry websites, professional memberships, media (e.g. Economist, The Lawyer, Financial Times) to identify recent achievements by the employer which could serve a conversation starter.
- Be curious. Think of questions you may wish to ask. Networking events are an invitation to dig deeper, into the things you have learnt in your research.
- Consider how you can quickly express your interests, values and strengths to help the employer learn more about you. If you need help to consider and practice this then book an appointment with a careers consultant to help examine your goals.
- Update your CV and LinkedIn profile in case an opportunity arises to exchange any information about yourself to helpful contacts. The LinkedIn app contains a QR code which allows quick sharing of profile details.
- Think about first impressions - it is worth dressing smart but casually. Consider how to convey presence with an employer though techniques of open body language and active listening techniques.
- Take a notebook or make sure you have your phone handy, so that you can record important facts.
- Go with an open and enquiring mind. Chance conversations can sometimes open new and unexpected opportunities
Advice to help you set up for virtual networking events
Handshake is a great resource to help you identify other online employer events or alumni panels. These are your opportunity to research more about employers and hear others career stories. In addition to thinking about questions you may wish to ask of the speakers it is also important to check your desk set up in advance of the event. Here are our 5 Top Tips:
- Keep your background plain or blurred
- Dress appropriately (head to toe!)
- Check your technology, camera and sound – do you know how to mute /unmute & access the chat function?
- Consider your posture whether standing or seating and how to convey a professional approachable presence.
- Try to ensure no distractions. You can prepare a quiet space but not control unknown variables like loss of internet. Employers understand unknowns can happen.
Careers fairs and networking opportunities can often be noisy and overwhelming occasions. So, allow yourself time to navigate the event as you need. It is okay to step out to find a quiet space to take notes before returning to speak with the next person.
To help you identify questions to ask at an event think about your purpose. Are you wanting to learn about vacancies and opportunities, learn more about the employer /organisation, or research more about what a job/role might entail and to understand if it is right for you?
You could prompt AI to assist you in identifying relevant questions. For example, “I am a 2nd year [insert subject] student and will be attending an event about [insert event]. I am interested in the employer [insert employer] what career and industry insight questions could I ask?
It is possible that AI will then ask you if you wish to tailor any additional questions to reflect specific areas of interest. This approach to questioning is described as an Informational interview, an informal way to learn more.
Whilst it is good practice to have curated questions also be versatile to take cues and to ask new questions which develop the quality of conversation.
Why not have a copy of your up-to-date CV or a QR code to your LinkedIn profile at hand, and if you want to follow up, ask them the best way to stay in touch.
Finally, be professional, polite and courteous and don’t just help yourself to the freebies!
Informational interviews
Don’t worry if you are not 100% sure on a career goal at this stage. This is your opportunity to research and gather information to help make an informed choice. To give you confidence and to learn more about the benefits of an informational interview read our guide. In summary it details.
- How to find useful contacts
- Considerations when making contacts
- Ways to explore the questions you may wish to ask of your contacts
This informative video from Future You graduate careers Prospects details more about developing career readiness skills like networking and informational interviewing and suggests the 5 ways to make the most of careers fairs.
The few days after an event provide time to reflect on what you learnt and to action identified next steps.
- Review your notes and continue your research into opportunities that have sparked your interest. This may include following companies /individuals on LinkedIn.
- Note any additional questions you may have because of your reflections on the event.
- Diarise known important dates such as further company events, applications and vacation schemes opening and closing deadlines.
- Follow up with a thank you either via email or LinkedIn to individuals who maybe a useful future contact. Below, we have an example of a follow up email you might send to an employer. Think about how you might adapt the content for your own situation.
FAIR LETTER TO BE ADDED
Top Tip
When you're applying to a role, you could even mention the person you met at an event in your application. This helps you demonstrate commitment to the role and further knowledge of the organisation.
Equality, Diversity and Inclusion
The University of Exeter holds and supports many equality, diversity and inclusion related events and activities throughout the year which you can find on our events home page.
We are keen to support you to find and research Inclusive Employers. To learn more about this, to seek advice on your rights, and disclosing a disability look at our Supporting Equality & Diversity pages.