Job fairs; or Career Expos are held nationwide for all different fields. Some are highly specialized toward a specific industry, such as an IT jobs fair or a Healthcare career expo, whereas others are held to promote local job openings or for companies who are specifically looking to recruit for diversity. If you are looking for teacher jobs, an education job fair would be the best place to start. For ideas on a new career path you may want to look into a more general recruitment fair that would offer a more diverse selection of job opportunities. Even Uncle Sam holds job fairs to fill positions for government jobs. No matter what field you are looking to get into, there is a job fair to connect you with the right employer.
A few things to remember when setting out for your appearance at a career fair:
· Dress professionally, as if you were headed for a job interview. You never know, the person who makes the hiring decisions might be there, and if you play your cards right you might be offered a position on the spot.
· Bring several copies of your resume. Also bring your portfolio (if applicable) to show samples of previous work. If you have samples to leave with your resume, even better. The more that will make your application stand out above the rest, the better.
· Ask questions. This way you open a dialogue with the recruiter, and you also find out if the career opportunity with their company is right for you. It helps to have your list of questions for potential employers prepared before you head out for a job fair.
· Take a notepad and pen. You'll be talking with many people, and you'll want to take notes for later reference. Jot down the names of the people you talk to, the openings they have available, etc.
· Most importantly, you must be outgoing and friendly. Approach the tables at the job fair with confidence and a smile; this is your chance to make a good first impression.
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For more information about this article: http://www.employer.com/recruitment/job-fair?keywords=education+and+career+fair&referrer=Adwords&camp=Employer-04&group=education+and+career+fair&keyword=career+fair+tip&traffictype=search&creativeid=2429529324&sourcesite=

Employment Guide Job Fair

Putting America Back To Work

Here in Houston is more than just a saying – You have the opportunity to interview with some of Houston’s top companies. This job fair is an event for the community as we are offering, Blood Drive sponsored by Gulf Coast Regional Blood Center, Interview techniques and resume writing provided by the Houston Area Urban League and a Food Drive to assist our friends and neighbors.
When: Wednesday October 14, 2009 from 10am -3pm
Where: Humble Civic Center – 2833 Will Clayton Parkway, Humble, TX 77338
Bring Resumes – Dress Professionally
Pre-Register for the job fair now to get better employer exposure

Photo by Army.mil (top) and The National Guard (bottom)


Because of the economy it seems more people are turning towards alternate resources for their income. Some are starting their own businesses, while others are looking into the military.

“We are seeing more people who are approaching us than we did last spring,” said Lt. Gen. Benjamin Freakley, commander of the Army’s Accessions Command, which oversees recruiting and training.

While the Army’s pitch is geared toward service of country, it also offers up to $40,000 in bonuses to those who qualify for certain jobs. In addition, a soldier can get up to $81,756 to help pay for college through the Montgomery GI Bill and the Army College Fund.

While the Army and military services is a great option, especially with the mentioned benefits along with the experience and leadership skills that you can learn, it's still a pretty significant decision. One that shouldn't be taken lightly, or just for a means of employment.

Most of the years when unemployment went up were during peacetime, Freakley said. This time, the Army is fighting wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.

While there are the benefits of a job, bonuses and scholarships, “it’s still a very significant decision to join an Army while a country is at war,” Freakley said.
“It’s not about joining for employment. You’re joining for deployment.”

Although all of the services report meeting recruiting goals, the upsurge is helping the Army, which plans to add 30,000 more active-duty troops by Sept. 30, for a total of 547,000.

Read the full article from The State.

Photo copyright NewOrleansOnline.com.

Happy Mardi Gras to our blog readers!

Did you know?
- The first Mardi Gras parade was held in New Orleans on February 24, 1857 by the Krewe of Comus. They began the tradition of presenting a parade with floats and following it with a ball for the krewe and their guests.

- Krewes are the organizations that put together the parades and balls that are traditionally held on Mardi Gras (or Fat Tuesday). They're also the ones generally on the floats throwing beads or candy.

- The official colors of Mardi Gras are purple, green and gold. Purple stands for justice, green for faith, and gold for power.

If you're in New Orleans for Mardi Gras or want to know more about the history of Marti Gras and Carnival, you can find more information on all the events going on here. Or check out the Wikipedia article.

Save lives and your career, Houston! Come out to the Toyota Center for our General and Healthcare Job fair and Blood Drive. Come and participate and find a new career at our job fair. While you are here give the gift that saves lives; donate to the Gulf Coast Regional Blood Center Blood Drive.

For more information on today's event visit here.

You heard me right. Are you up on the latest job fashion? And I don't mean interview or work attire... Meaning do you know what your job's trend is? There's another useful tool on SimplyHired.com that will help you in your job search called Employment Trends. This search tool helps you find the number of jobs throughout the nation in your particular field. For example, we did a trend on nursing jobs. When we entered different nursing positions into the search engine this graph came up:


Now the results search listings from May 2007 to today. Here's what this graph shows:

RN jobs increased 17%
LPN jobs increased 55%
CNA jobs increased 50%
PN jobs decreased 21%
LVN jobs increased 57%
Nursing jobs increased 125%

As you can see, not all job markets are decreasing. In fact, nursing is booming. Especially the LPN and CNA positions. Check out our Guide to Careers: Nursing Jobs post for more information on what the differences between RNs, LPNs and CNAs are.

This is good information for both job seekers and recruiters to know what kind of availability is out there in your field, to stay in the know on your industry and to just see what the market looks like.

Related Stories:

• Ignite Your Job Search
• Recession Recruiting: What to do when they cut the budget

- Rosie Reilman

The two largest markets in Texas -- Houston and Dallas-Fort Worth -- registered the nation’s biggest gains in private-sector employment, according to employment figures released Tuesday by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

The Houston area added 42,400 private-sector jobs between November 2007 and November 2008, and Dallas-Fort Worth picked up 35,100. No other U.S. market gained more than 15,600 private-sector jobs during the 12-month period.

Other cities in our area in the top 100 of job gains:

1. Houston, up 42,400 jobs
2. Dallas-Fort Worth, up 35,100 jobs
4. San Antonio, up 11,700 jobs
8. New Orleans, up 7,200 jobs
16. Baton Rouge, La., up 2,800 jobs

Read full article here at San Antonio Business Journal

Updating your deets.
When starting a job search it's important to make sure that you have updated information. Make sure your resume, your recommendations, references and online profiles are up to date. You might want to brush up on your social media know-how as well. These sites are proving to be quite helpful in the job search.

Ask your network.
Referrals are still the most popular way that people find jobs. Talk to your friends, family, and old coworkers about your job search. They might be able to help point you in the right direction or get your foot in the door to an interview. You never know, you might get a good referral. Helping others can also be beneficial during your job search.

Do some soul-searching and know what you want.
I've heard many recruiters complain that job seekers don't know what they want before they start looking. Start with what you are good at. Then think about what it is you really would like to do. Sometimes that might mean going back for some extra schooling or coursework. Take time to find the perfect job for you. This will make it easier when you are going through the interview and hiring process to have confidence and enthusiasm.


- Rosie Reilman, Photo by Tambako the Jaguar