Re: Job fairs

[Richard Lippincott <rlippinc -at- BEV -dot- ETN -dot- COM>]

I said that I had attended a few job fairs, and hadn't gotten a great deal out
of it.  Marc Santacroce responded with:

>I still think there is some benefit to going to joib fairs. It's a great
>way to see what requirements employers are asking for of their engineers
>and program,mers. Gives you a clue of what you might need to study. Also
>gives a good exposure to the type technical person you will be dealing with
>when you do land that position. And, it's a practice 30 sec interview for
>you to be able to succinctly state who you aare, what you do, and what you
>are looking for.

"...and programmers..."??? But what if I was looking for a job writing about
hardware?  (Just teasing.)

Seriously, Marc did make good points. Part of the problem I experienced was
because tech writing was often so far from the company's mind, that it was
difficult to break the ice in that short period of time.  There were also
many companies that had no interest in hiring tech writers -ever-, that
it was really an exercise in paper shuffling.  Well, maybe I should have
worked a bit harder on that interview technique.

It also came to mind, after I sent the first message, that I -did- make some
productive contacts at job fairs. Mostly these were headhunters and contract
agencies, but they were worthwhile.  Although, to answer the original question,
I don't know of anyone that got a job that way I do recognize some value.

I mean, I -did- keep going -back- to the job fairs, you'll notice.

Rick Lippincott
Eaton Semiconductor
rlippinc -at- bev -dot- etn -dot- com