Fair market value

The Halifax Career Fair "is the premier recruiting event."

Break out your résumé and spruce up your ‘elevator speech’: it’s time once again for the Halifax Career Fair.

The annual event, a partnership between Dalhousie, Saint Mary’s and Mount Saint Vincent universities, takes place this Tuesday, September 30 at the Cunard Centre. It provides students access to over 160 employers looking to hire graduates in the year to come.

“This is the premier recruiting event on our calendar,” says Laura Addicott, director of Dalhousie’s Career Services Centre. “It brings in the best organizations and presents the best exploratory opportunities for students. It really allows them to be in charge, to determine who they want to learn more about. The students are the ones interviewing the companies – it’s a great reversal.”

Ms. Addicott notes the event has doubled in size in recent years, and credits the exploding job market for new graduates as a key factor. “Companies are learning that they can’t just show up here and talk about their website and expect to attract students,” she explains. “Now, most of them show up with jobs in hand. In a way, the fair is like a microcosm of what’s going on in the job market for young people.”

For companies like Imperial Oil, the Halifax Career Fair is an opportunity to get “one stop access” to a large number of potential recruits.

“We have a strong presence in Eastern Canada, and this effort is part of a broader recruitment drive which includes campuses across the country,” explains Jon Harding, spokesperson for the company. “It allows us to have a broad range of company representatives available to students from all universities at the same event.”

Like most companies at the Halifax Career Fair, Imperial Oil is not just looking for students from one discipline. They are casting a wide net, with opportunities for students studying engineering, science, business programs and computer science. Other exhibitors at the fair are looking to reach students in disciplines such as health professions, architecture, arts and social sciences and everything else in between.

The Halifax Career Fair starts at 9 a.m. and runs until 4 p.m. Admission is free but requires a university ID or alumni card. Students also have access to free bus transportation between Dalhousie and the Cunard Centre. For more information, visit www.halifaxcareerfairs.com