CS Industry: Career And Intern Fairs - acmutd/help-guide GitHub Wiki

Career And Intern Fairs

What is the Career/Intern Fair

These fairs are essentially a place for companies (i.e. recruiters) to meet and recruit local talent. At UTD this happens either via the Career Expo which has usually taken place at the Activity Center* or the ECS Intern Fair which takes place in the ECS buildings*. Both of these events will happen once a semester and attract a range of local and regional companies. You can expect companies to set up booths around the venue with posters, swag, recruiters, and engineers standing by to talk to you and get your resumes.

Note: We'll refer to The Career Expo and ECS Intern Fair jointly as "Fairs" from here on out.

* The locations listed here are relevant as of Dec. 2020 and may have changed in the future. Check online for official locations!

Why should you go?

"They just tell you to apply online" 😞

Many people are pessimistic about these sort of events and complain that even when you show up recruiters just end up telling you to apply online. Though this may be true for some companies, the majority of recruiters are there to find talent in person that they may not be able to recognize just over a pdf on their application portal. Especially in unique cases where your GPA may not be that great, or you're from a lesser known/regional university, or you simply don't have that much experience, these Fairs can help you stand out in person with other traits that couldn't have been conveyed through an online application.

Practice makes perfect

Going to these fairs is one of the best ways to build experience interviewing and talking to recruiters! If you want to end up in Industry you're probably going to have to interact with recruiters and go through behavioral interviews. Think of each conversation with a recruiter at the intern fair as a mini behavioral interview and when you actually have a real one you'll be able to approach it with a little bit of experience already under your belt!

Moreover, your interactions can teach you what to say and what not to say in future interviews. If a certain project on your resume continually garners attention then you know that it's probably worthwhile to bring that up during future interviews and vice versa. Speaking of resumes you can also get vibes on what sections might be worth deleting based on the interest shown by recruiters.

Networking

I hate to say it but NETWORKING. It isn't everyone's cup of tea but Fairs are a great way to network with companies and create future contacts. Check out this page for more info on networking.

Reverse-Interviewing**

Getting face-time with recruiters and engineers is always an opportunity to interview the company! Though usually companies interview students make sure that you are interviewing the company as well because at the end of the day this is your future and you want to make sure you're making the right decision for yourself. We talk about Reverse-Interviewing more in this section. The gist here is that you want to get an inside scoop of the company and learn more about their people and values. With this information you can better compare companies in the future when you get multiple offers.

** Reverse-Interviewing is a term coined by Mustafa Sadriwala and may or may not be an actual word used by normal people

Free Swag

Title speaks for itself. Do you need another reason besides Free Sh*t?

How to Prepare

  • Review your Resume
    • Make sure you go through your resume and know everything that you have on there and can talk about your major projects in detail!
    • We talk more about making a bomb resume in this section
    • Make sure that you have a one-page resume! No one is going to spend the time to look at two pages!
    • Upload your resume to Handshake (UTD's career/job portal)
    • Verify that the resume you are printing/uploading is up-to-date.
      • Print out several (10-20) copies of your resume so that you can hand it out to interested parties! * The number here depends on how many companies you plan on talking to. Always carry some extra though!
  • Dress to Impress
    • Do whatever you need to, to boost your confidence!
    • For a lot of people this means dressing your best, shining your shoes, color-coordinating your tie
    • Even if you don't get a confidence boost from this make sure you are still wearing something professional and get your outfit ready the night before so there aren't any big decisions to make in the morning.
  • Health and Hygiene
    • This is probably the same advice you hear every time you take a major exam
    • Get some good sleep (I'm talking big-time REM bby 😴)
    • Eat a healthy breakfast that keeps you energized
    • Shower and brush your teeth (even if your event ends up being virtual these things are still important to make you feel and be your best!)
  • Research
    • There will be a lot of companies and you will not have time to meet them all. Read up on which companies will be attending the event (you likely will have either received an email or can find this email online) and which ones you want to talk to.
    • Pick your top 15-20 companies that you want to meet and give your resume to
    • Don't just gravitate towards big names, make sure you take the time and find out what work other companies do even if you haven't heard of them
    • Develop and practice your Elevator Pitch

The Elevator Pitch

Ah, Yes. ~ ✨The Elevator Pitch✨~ An age-old classic and a must-have for any convention or fair. This is the opening statement you give when you first go up to talk to someone. The idea comes from pitching a business idea: Say you are a new CEO and have to convince a big-shot executive of your idea so that they will invest in you but you can't seem to get an appointment with them. Fortunately, you somehow manage to catch them on their elevator ride up to their office. Thus, in the span of 30 to 60 seconds you have to convince them of your idea. In this case there isn't a business or an idea instead you are convincing the recruiter/engineer that YOU are worth investing in.

General Format

  • Introduction: Your name, year/grad date, major
    • "Hello, my name is John Doe. I am a Sophomore studying Computer Science here at UT Dallas.
  • Body: Your experience!
    • I have experience in ABC through XYZ
    • Some examples (these are general examples and here to help give you inspiration, you probably wouldn't include all these bullets and you might consider adding an extra sentence of explanation for the ones you do include)
      • "I have industry experience in Web Development with React and NodeJS through my internship with LMNO..."
      • "I have academic experience in Java and C through my courseworks and projects like EFG..."
      • "I have research experience with Dr. QRS in the TUV lab working with MATLAB and Python to conduct analysis on protein synthesis..."
      • "I have leadership experience through clubs such as ACM where I have helped to coordinate workshops such as XYZ..."
  • Conclusion: Why are you here?
    • "I am interested in working for your company, ABC, because ..."
    • "I am looking for a Software Engineering/insert job title internship for the Summer of 20??"

Practice

Have your elevator pitch memorized so that you can quickly get across these key points to recruiters in the first few minutes of meeting them. You don't need to have it memorized word-for-word if that's not your style instead just remember the general points you always want to get across. Some other people I know have written the entire speech down and memorized that by heart because they have a hard time thinking about these things on the spot if that's you then do what you gotta do!

Practice saying this elevator pitch to yourself in the mirror, to your parent(s), to a friend, whatever works best for you. Make sure you say the whole thing out-loud multiple times so that you can catch an errors, make sure it flows smoothly, and get used to saying it.

During the Fair

  • Try to leave any backpack or extra luggage at home/in your car
  • Try to get to the fair early and take a lap around the venue
    • familiarize yourself with where booths are set up and identify the locations of companies you researched
    • if you ask staff members they will probably have maps available
  • Go through your priority list of companies and start at the end
    • This is such important advice!
    • If your dream company is XYZ DO NOT go talk to them first!
      • even if you're scared they will form a huge line
    • Instead start with companies that don't mean as much to you so that you can warm-up and get a bit into the groove
    • Once you've talked to a couple of low-pri companies start taking a stab at one of your top 10!
  • Don't stress about lines, if a company is big and famous they are bound to have big lines but at the same time those recruiters are usually prepared and have streamlined workflows to expedite their booth and everyone's time
  • While you're waiting in line take out any notes you might have or resume and go over what you want to talk about one more time. This is also a great chance to practice your elevator pitch!
  • Be prepared to be exhausted. Talking to so many people in a day especially with your future career potentially at stake is mentally and physically draining! This is why a goodnight's sleep and a healthy breakfast/lunch are important.
    • Also just because one company maybe didn't appreciate what you had to offer doesn't mean they all will. Try to stay positive! Odds are you are going to hear "No" or "We'll be in touch..." more often than "We want to interview you" and that's fine. Just make sure a previous rejection doesn't affect your next opportunity.

Talking with Recruiters

  • When you start talking
    • Shake their hand, give good EYE CONTACT
    • Give your elevator pitch
    • ONLY give your resume after saying your elevator pitch
      • If you hand someone a piece of paper they are going to start reading it and not listen to you! Say your piece first then give them the resume!
  • When they are talking - Pay attention to what they are saying - maintain eye contact (but don't stare) - Answer questions when prompted
  • Answering Questions (STAR Format)
    • We talk more about STAR in the Behavioral Interview Section
    • outline the Situation, describe the Task, tell them what Action(s) you took, and explain your Results.
  • Ask Questions
    • Ask them important questions about their opportunities, company values, work-life balance (i.e. the things you care about when picking a job!)
    • At this stage DO NOT ask about:
      • Salary or benefits
      • "What does you company do?"

Be your best self

Hype yourself up! Self-confidence is a hard trait to teach but it's really important here. Obviously don't be arrogant, but understand your strengths! Even if you don't have a lot of technical experience maybe you have a lot of retail experience that makes you a great communicator and team member or maybe you are a really fast learner. Figure out your strengths and use them to sell yourself! It's hard to remain optimistic when there are so many rejections but try to keep a positive outlook, it will give you a much better chance at convincing people to hire you.

What happens afterwards?

Many companies may tell you to apply online. A lot of times this is necessary for companies to get you in their official recruiting pipeline so make sure you do this ASAP.

Some companies may offer you on-campus interviews on the spot of follow-up via the email on your resume. Make sure that you are checking your email often and responding in a timely fashion. Try to periodically also check your junk mail so you don't miss any opportunities.

If you made a real connection with a recruiter then feel free to send them a message on LinkedIn and connect with them. Do NOT spam every single recruiter you meet. Sometimes recruiters may even tell you explicitly to connect with them on LinkedIn because they want to keep your contact for the future in which case do so ASAP.

Virtual Fairs

It's unclear to what extent virtual fairs will remain prevalent after 2021. But here's a section addressing differences in case this information is still useful after the COVID-19 pandemic.

Differences

  • Tech Setup
    • It's important to know what equipment you'll be using for
    • Test your web cam if you have one and your microphone and make sure they are working properly
    • Make sure you have a solid internet connection for the day of the fair
  • Presentation
    • Even though you won't be in-person, the way you look is still important and conveys a lot
      • If you don't have a web camera then check to make sure you have a good profile picture (something is better than nothing)
    • Ensure that you have a quiet space from which to join the event
    • Find a good plain background or one that is neat and organized
  • Preparation
    • Make sure you have signed up and registered for all the events that you want to attend
    • Regularly check back in and see if there are any newly-scheduled events you are interested in
    • Research the companies that you have scheduled events or 1-on-1 session with
  • Resume
    • You can likely use the same resume just double-check that it is recent and you have uploaded it to the relevant portal
  • Time Management
    • Since everything is scheduled beforehand you should never be late to any of your sessions! ESPECIALLY if it is an interview or a small group session with a company rep.
    • If something urgent comes up then make sure you communicate with the company rep. and explain the situation to them. You should also try to reschedule the session if it was 1-on-1 or an interview.