How to Prepare for the 2011 Spring Career Fair

Each year Career Service puts on 3 huge career and internship fairs, with anywhere from 80 to 180 employers looking for CU-Boulder students and recent grads. Get ready, because the Spring Career and Internship Fair is being held this week!

Who: Companies and Professionals for ALL majors and ALL years (yes, even freshmen and sophomores)!

Where: UMC Glenn Miller Ballroom

When: Wednesday & Thursday, January 26 & 27 9:00 a.m. – 3:00 p.m.

A variety of companies, employers, and professionals will attend the two-day event. This is a perfect opportunity to network and learn about possible internship and job opportunities. With so many professionals and possible opportunities it is important to come prepared. Use the following tips to make the most out of the 2011 Spring Career Fair!

1. Dress for Success! The atmosphere of the fair will be like any other job fair – professional! Treat this like an interview and dress in business professional attire. This is your opportunity to make a good first impression so make one that lasts. Remember, it is always better to OVER dress rather than UNDER dress!

2. Research the companies in attendance. Career Services has provided a list of companies coming to the fair each day. There are completely different companies attending each day! Please review these lists and choose several you are interested in talking to. Then once you get to the fair you won’t waste too much time figuring out the relevant companies you would like to visit with. Remember, if the company doesn’t list your major specifically, it’s ALWAYS worth talking to the recruiter to inquire about positions that may fit your skills and/or personality. This is a chance to sell yourself. Read through the list of companies attending both days of the fair here.

3.Bring your resume and cover letter. Make sure you bring your necessary professional documents to the fair with you: resume, cover letter, business cards, and a winning attitude. This is your opportunity to find companies you would like to intern or work for and give them your information to look at. Submitting your resume/cover letter at the fair gives you an automatic advantage since the professionals are already meeting you before reviewing your application. With a good impression and resume you have a great chance of finding an incredible opportunity. Even if you are slightly interesting in a company or position, give them your resume! It never hurts and the benefits could be really rewarding! If they tell you that they can’t or aren’t accepting resumes and to apply online, always do so right away. They’re not trying to brush you off, so definitely don’t get discouraged. For some companies, the only way they can accept resumes is online; this is due to EOE employment law. Don’t give up, just go online as soon as you can and apply.

We hope these tips help you get prepared and ready for an incredible 2 day fair! For more details on the Career Fair and to view employer profiles and positions they’re recruiting for, log into our CSO Website from our website: http://careerservices.colorado.edu.

Steps to Being an Effective Networker

Although resumes, cover letters, and applications are the technical way of getting a job or internship - in truth, many times the key to getting an interview is all about who you know! Creating a group of professional contacts in your career field and using them as references or for a source for career recommendations or suggestions is how we network. Although networking may seem easy to define, the process can sometimes be intimidating to begin. The following are tips to help you get started networking and building a list of professional contacts:

Networking Preparation:
1. Understand what your goal is for networking. This involves understanding what your career goals are. If you understand your career goals before meeting with your new contact you will not only be making a professional contact, but also be able to ask questions pertinent to your career and job market you aspire to be in.
2. Bring a resume or business card when networking with your new contact.
3. Have a 30 second summary of yourself ready to tell your networking professional.
4. Come prepared with any questions you may have!

Building a List of New Contacts:
1. Before contacting the professional – be prepared by writing a “script” or pre-written letter telling the contact about yourself, your networking & career goals, and what you hope to learn from your meeting with them.
2. Refrain from calling your meeting an interview – you are NOT interviewing for a job!

Following up with Contacts:
1. After your networking meeting make sure to ask for a business card! This way you have direct contact information and an address to send a thank you note.
2. Within a week after your meeting make sure to send a thank you note to your contact. Although it is ok to send an email it is more personable and memorable to send a handwritten note.
3. Keep track of the business card and information you received during the meeting. Try to keep in touch with your contact. Most people are more than willing to be contacted if you have any further questions.

Now that you have an idea of how to start networking, put your skills to the test and get more information from industry professionals. On Monday, January 24th from 5:30 – 7:00 pm, Career Services will be hosting a "Recruiters Tell All" career panel in the C4C, 3rd Floor, Abrams Lounge. Recruiters will be there to answer questions and give tips about resumes, cover letters, networking, career fairs, salary negotiations and more. Bring your questions! No need to rsvp, just show up!

Internships in the Music Industry: Kelly Miller, Intern at Madison House, Inc.

My name is Kelly Miller, and I'm a senior Broadcast Production major in the School of Journalism and Mass Communications. I'll be graduating this May and have been interning at Madison House for about a year now. I have learned so much about the music business. Madison House Inc. is a booking and management agency based in Boulder, CO. They represent clients such as String Cheese Incident, Bassnectar, Keller Williams, Karl Denson's Tiny Universe, Zion I, Blackalicious and more. As booking agents, Madison House is responsible for contacting venues and scheduling tours. Their artists have been at venues and festivals across the country. They also serve as managers for many of their clients, as well as producers of Rothbury Festival, which hosted over 60 acts in 2008 & 2009.

As an intern, I assist the agents and their assistants with anything they ask for. This could be researching venues in different parts of the country that artists are trying to build a fan base in, entering show information into their system to see how many people came out for certain shows, or writing news blurbs for their new interactive website. The agents are so busy everyday, on the phone and in meetings, that they may never get up from their office chair and it is my responsibility to make sure that they have everything that they need.

What I enjoy most about Madison House is their idea of quality over quantity. While other agencies focus on having as large of a roster as possible, Madison House focuses on finding musical acts that they enjoy and sharing them with others. The agents have a close relationship with their artists, and that is not always the case with large agencies. Also, being based out of Boulder helps in the goal to expand the music industry to the Rockies. While most agencies stay in LA or New York, Madison House works to bring attention to the amazing artists and venues we have in Colorado, like Red Rocks. MH artists travel all over the world, but they make sure that Colorado is taken care of when it comes to being exposed to great shows.

My advice to students who are looking for internships in the music industry is to research and jump at any opportunity you can get! Begin with checking out Career Services Online (CSO) for internship positions. There are so many interesting opportunities on there, that you can really broaden your experience in many different areas. So many of these positions often go without being filled, so this is your chance to land an internship where you can not only learn valuable skills, but expand your network of professional contacts.

So many people want internships these days that it is important to work hard to earn your place. Before I started interning at Madison House, I was a production intern at the Fox Theatre in Boulder. I was hired almost immediately, along with other students, but once you were hired you needed to prove that you would work hard in order to stay. People who only worked for free tickets did not last very long. I would also recommend being specific about what you want to accomplish. I knew right away that I wasn't going to be the one setting up 50-pound speakers on stage and that I wanted to work in booking or managing. I approached my boss with what I was interested in and he really helped me out. He told me about Madison House and their internship program. In this industry, you really need to work your way up and prove that you have what it takes to be successful.

Career Services offers so many great services and events, for FREE, that I would highly recommend making an appointment with a counseling or going in during walk-ins to get assistance. I've been going to Career Services since my freshmen year and it's been so helpful. I feel more prepared for life after graduation because of all the events Career Services puts on and all the support they've provided. I would definitely encourage students to attend the next Annual Networking Night to practice your networking skills and learn more about what networking is. This event has helped me to feel more comfortable networking with employers and I can practice my networking and communication skills, something that employers really value, in a casual setting with people who are there to help me.