Myth Buster Monday: Underclassmen and Job Fairs

MYTH: As an underclassman, you will not benefit from job fairs, especially ones not in your own major.

So, this is kind of a "killing two birds with one stone" Mythbuster Monday- yes, we mean business! Word on the street is that if you’re a freshman or sophomore, attending a job fair won’t really benefit you. Well, let’s consider this: If it doesn’t benefit you, why would we invite you to come? … Exactly, it makes no sense to us either. We’re here to tell you that no matter what year you are in school, a job fair will definitely benefit you. Though employers may be looking for upperclassman to work, it’s still a great idea to go ahead and get your name out there and make those connections early. You can look at is as an “insurance policy” for your future plans. You can go and set a good foundation now so when the time comes for you to actually seek a job for your career, your policy already has you covered- you’ve made those connections, networked, and are in pretty good with a few company recruiters. Attending a job fair as an underclassman will totally benefit you by giving you much-needed practice for when your time comes and it’s time to really showcase yourself as well. Then, of course, there’s the obvious. You could ACTUALLY score a job. I know, it sounds crazy, but it happens.

Aside from the underclassman issue, there also seems to be a linked assumption to job fairs that tells us we shouldn't go to a job fair if it is not one directly related to our major. As contradictory as this may sound, you actually shouldn't just stick to job fairs for your major. Why? Well, HELLO! There's a world of opportunity out there. At Career Services, we have received numerous testimonials about students going outside the box and just "dropping by" random job/internship fairs and actually scoring a great experience and some valuable connections.  That's the whole idea behind networking. You can have what you want in mind, but sometimes you just need to go with the flow and start talking to people that seem interesting and that can open a door that you had never thought to even look in before. 

                                                              

Moral of the story: Nothing is worthless, just go for it! 

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