This year the Fall Career Fair is going virtual! Traditionally, the career fair is a two-day event conducted bi-annually by RIT. Since 2020 is so special and one needs to take so many precautions, RIT has canceled the in-person Career Fair and instead decided to conduct it virtually, for 2 whole weeks!
Some quick tips to help you in the virtual fair:
Prepare your Resume
Structure your resume so that your skills and qualifications are highlighted. On an average, a recruiter spends about 30 seconds on your resume. Keep it short and simple and easy for the eyes. Though only a one-page document, the Resume is the most important aspect that employers look at. You can book an appointment with RIT Career Services located at Bausch and Lomb center to help you with your resume (they are offering virtual reviews as well due to COVID 19).
Shortlist the companies
Research about the companies that you are interested in. Visit the company’s website and look for the products they build and the technologies they use. Go to the Careers page and look at the open positions. Are they hiring for Fall or Summer or both? Are the openings for Full-Time or Internship? What technologies are they looking for in their positions?
RSVP for information sessions
Book your slot for the company you are interested in. Login to RIT Career Connect with your RIT student account. Look for Information Sessions/ Career Week under Events on the left panel. Search for the company you are interested in. (You can filter according to your track). The slots fill up pretty quickly, so make sure you plan ahead!
Apply on Career Connect
Pretty much every employer attending the career fair would have posted all their openings on RIT Career Connect. Be sure to apply to ALL the positions you are interested in. Some companies might require you to apply on the company website as well, so make sure to complete that step!
Follow up
Submitted your application but did not hear back from the company? Send a polite follow-up mail. Typically, companies receive thousands of applications, which gets hard to handle. A polite follow-up email reaffirms your interest in the company.
Make connections
Interested in a company but feel you are not yet qualified for the position? Connect with the recruiter on LinkedIn to learn more about future opportunities.
The Fall 2020 career fair will commence from September 22, 2020, until October 8, 2020, weekdays from 10 am – 5 pm. All the best!
About the author
I am currently pursuing Master’s in Computer Science at RIT. My interests lie in Data Science and I wish to pursue my career in the same field. Reading books, Netflixing, exploring new places and shopping are among my favorite hobbies.