Your Career Fair Portfolio

The 2009 Springfield Collegiate Career Fair is coming up in just a matter of weeks, and it is now time to start thinking about what you are going to prepare for the career fair. The most essential item that you can bring would be your portfolio.

The portfolio itself needs to be a simple durable container. You can specifically find them near the writing supplies aisles in most department stores and they often are as cheap as ten dollars. Inside your portfolio you will keep all the documents that will be helpful for you at the career fair. Some things to include in your portfolio include:

1. Resume
2. Cover Letter
3. Networking Cards
4. Transcripts
5. Certificates, Awards, or other Special Commendations

Your resume and cover letter are two very important items for your portfolio that you should begin revising or creating now. Since by now you should have a list of employers that you wish to specifically visit, you will be able to customize your resumes to each position. You will also be able to write a cover letter for each employer as well.

Each one of your resumes will at least need to have personalized objective statements for each employer, and at most, will be a completely remodeled resume in regards to your skills. You will want to examine job descriptions from the companies, call the companies for information, visit their websites to do research, or even set up an informational interview with the company to find out what kinds of jobs they are offering to see if they match your interests.

Alongside all of your resumes, you will also be writing well crafted and personalized cover letters for the employers. The cover letters will show your dedication and interest in their companies by showing off your knowledge of their company and how your specific skills will be perfect for the jobs they will be hiring for.

There are many other items you can include in your portfolio. If you think that something shows off your skills, include it. You will also want to make sure that you have up to date and accurate Networking Cards in your portfolio. Details on Networking Cards will be the subject of our next article as well.

If you have any questions about what to include in your portfolio, how to put together a resume or cover letter, or have any career fair related questions in general, the UIS Career Development Center is here to answer your questions. Email us at careerservices@uis.edu, call us at 206-6508, or come in and visit us at SAB 50.