In an effort to continue delivering on its mission to help students realize their career aspirations, the Russell Palmer Career Management Center has announced that it will host a virtual career fair all this week. The career fair is open to students in the MBA program as well as specialty master’s degree students in market research, business analytics and accounting programs.
The event has been spearheaded by Bronti Ziolkowski, career events and communications manager for the Palmer Center. “She’s just done an amazing job in orchestrating this, coordinating with all the schools and really making this all happen,” Marla McGraw, director of the Palmer Center, said.
In planning the event, Ziolkowski collaborated with several business schools across the country, including the Fisher College of Business at Ohio State University and Mays Business School at Texas A&M. Students from six universities will have the opportunity to virtually network with at least 17 confirmed companies, including Netflix, Williams-Sonoma, Wells Fargo, Prudential Financial and Amazon.
Hosted through online recruiting platform RelishCareers, the week-long event will officially begin on Monday. “The first few days are used to review employer webinars and job postings, with the option for students to submit questions with each employer recruiter team,” McGraw explained. On Friday, students will have the opportunity to actually engage with employers directly through the online platform.
Although a virtual career fair is relatively uncharted territory for universities and employers alike, McGraw offered advice that holds true for any networking event: “The most important thing is to have good questions ready and prepare the same way you would for a regular career fair,” she said.
The Palmer Center has worked diligently to create and deliver detailed resources for students adapting to a virtual job search. Some tips are to prepare by having a fully charged laptop, proper camera and strong internet connection and by researching what to expect from the experience, as virtual career fair platforms may differ. Students can also schedule appointments with the Palmer Center career coaches to discuss networking strategies prior to engaging in the fair.
