Thoughts on the Job Fair

I attended a job fair at the Dayton Job Center this past Wednesday, April 30, 2003. I've spent a lot more time at the Job Center lately, searching for a job and getting set up with other services. Last fall, I attended another job fair at the Job Center as well.

I wasn't sure exactly what to expect. I knew from attending the job fair last fall that there were sure to be a lot of people there. I also expected that there would be a lot of organizations looking for people in the health care fields. Both of these expectations were met.

I felt that there were so many people at the job fair that it was hard to be in a one-on-one conversation with any recruiter for very long. I noticed a long line of people waiting to talk to recruiters from one company in particular.

Since my wife Jennie has been ill lately and was not able to attend the job fair, I used the opportunity to network a little bit with the health care companies that were looking for nurses asisstants.

I also went to see which companies would be looking for people in my field. I saw a few of them. Yet, when I talked to company representatives in person, their recommendation was still to send my resume via the company's website or via email.

I still wonder why these companies were present at the job fair at all if they were just going to ask me to send my resume to the company electronically.

As I left the job fair, I was encouraged to chat with another job seeker who was looking for a job in accounting. We used the opportunity to network and share our thoughts on the job fair.

I still believe that job fairs are great ways to meet companies and network with other job seekers, and I look forward to attending others in the future.