What is a Virtual Career Fair?

Virtual career fairs allow students to meet recruiters virtually through video and chat sessions. Attending video sessions instead of an in-person fair means there is no waiting in lines to talk to recruiters.  Instead, you can secure your spot by signing up ahead of time for dedicated, scheduled individual and group sessions with targeted recruiters.  This gives you a highly personalized and strategic way to navigate the fair and market yourself effectively to recruiters.  Another great benefit that virtual career fairs in Handshake allow you to easily follow up with recruiters after the fair and continue to network.

How do students talk to recruiters during the fair?

Students and recruiters will interact during the virtual fair using two types of networking session formats: Individual Sessions or Group Sessions.  Recruiters will create sessions in Handshake and students will sign up for either individual or group sessions or both.  Click HERE for steps on signing up for sessions.

Virtual Fair Resources

Check out these helpful resources for the Virtual Fall Career Fairs at Emporia State University.

Student Guide to Attending the Emporia State Virtual Fair

TOP 10 TIPS for Attending Virtual Career Fairs.  

What is my CHECKLIST to get ready for the virtual fair? 

1. Register for the Virtual Career Fairs NOW through Handshake by selecting the fair from your "Events" tab. Don't wait until the week of the career fair. Register early so employers can begin to consider you for opportunities. 

2. Sign up for individual and group sessions with recruiters.

3. Go Public with your resume and Handshake profile so recruiters can learn more about you. 

4. Get prepared for the fair with these TOP 10 TIPS.  

5. Test your audio and video before the fair, to ensure everything is working properly. 

6. Follow up with recruiters after the career fair. 

Communication and planning/organization are skills that employers expect new hires to possess and it is expected that as college students you can organize your scheduled meetings and communicate changes to those meetings as quickly as possible.  As such, Career Services has the following policy regarding missed appointments with Career Services staff and employers:

Missed Career Services Appointments

A student who misses an appointment with Career Services and fails to notify the Career Services staff member prior to the scheduled meeting is marked as a “No Show”.   A second “No Show” will result in the student’s Handshake account being suspended until the student contacts the Career Services office and complies with all requirements to have the Handshake account reinstated.

Failure to Upload Documents for Review Prior to a Scheduled Appointment

All communication a student sees/receives re: resume reviews, cover letter reviews, etc. directs the student to upload the necessary documents prior to the scheduled appointment.  If a document is not in the student’s Handshake account at least 24 hours prior to the time of the appointment, the counselor will mark the appointment as a “no show” and add a note explaining the “no show” status, attach the “No Show” label to the student’s profile page, and notify the student via Handshake of the “No Show” and the office’s policy on “no shows”. 

Missed Interview with an Employer

A student who:

·       misses a scheduled interview,  or

·       cancels the interview with less than 24 business hours prior to the interview

will be marked as a “No Show”.  Students who are considered “No Shows” are required to write personalized written correspondence to the employer with whom their interview was scheduled.  This correspondence should be professional and emailed or sent to the employer, with a copy also being sent to Career Services.  A student’s Handshake account will be suspended until the correspondence is received by the employer and Career Services. 

Illnesses are exempt from being labeled as “No Shows” but the student must notify the employer prior to the appointment, interview, or career fair session that the student cannot attend and, in the case of interviews and career fairs sessions, the student must still send a letter of explanation to the employer with a copy to Career Services.