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careers
Pros, cons of
the Job Fair
By Cathy Blundell
Special to the On-line Forty-Niner
How do Cal State
Long Beach students view the Job Fair? This is a question
we set out to answer.
Many students feel
it's a chance to show off their talents. Others either do
not know about it or feel it's a waste of time.
Armi-Claire Breton,
a senior accounting major, felt that the Job Fair was a positive
thing and well intended.
"I am looking forward
to the Job Fair," Breton said. "I believe that this opportunity
helps develop interpersonal and social skills of students
by interacting with business professionals."
Breton went on
to say that the Job Fair also allows recruiter/employers to
put a face with a name, instead of being just another resume.
Junior business
major Kevin Thompson reinforced those feelings.
"Definitely take
a look," he said.
Thompson should
know -- after attending last year's Job Fair, he was offered
a full-time position with Wells Fargo.
But not everyone
shared positive views toward the Job Fair. Several students
said they didn't even know about it.
"I don't think
the Job Fair has been advertised enough," said junior mathematics
major Lauren Sear. "Many students don't know anything about
it. I went to the Job Fair last year, but I didn't know
we were having one this year."
When Kay Young,
a junior liberal arts major was asked how she felt about the
Job Fair, she said, "I don't even care about it. Really,
I don't even know when it is."
Young went on to
say that she would prefer to have an interview on the spot
rather than passing out resumes all day.
Many students felt
that their major was not represented at the Job Fair.
They felt that if you were a business major it was a good
thing, but if you were any other major than you might not
be represented.
One of the biggest
questions most college students have is what to wear. Many
students were confused on dress -- do you wear a business
suit or can you come in regular clothes. These two questions
were enough for students to stay away from the Job Fair.
The choice is yours,
just remember the first impression with a potential employer
is key, and the way you look may factor in to their decision-making
process later.
If you think about
it, when else will you have the opportunity to mingle with
companies such as the Marriott, Office Depot, Nissan Motors,
Raytheon and many others in the same day. Remember,
it's free and college students like anything free.
The only way to
know if the Job Fair is right for you is to go. Really,
what do you have to lose? The Job Fair can help students
acquire a career and prevent them from having to go through
the classified ads after graduation.
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