Boston Fair Info and thoughts..
Posted: Sat Jan 26, 2019 7:20 pm
hi there,
Thought I'd give a bit of insight to the Cambridge fair. It won't come close to Shadowjack's!
Friday Night:
I arrived on Friday and staying at the hotel where the fair is. So glad I did this as when having downtime or needed a break, it's nice to be so close. That being said, it's a bit overwhelming being surrounded by both recruiters and candidates. They are next to you in the hotel room or all of us in the elevator together. Everyone has been very nice and it's been lovely chatting with others.
I did put handwritten notes, plus my ïchiro and my CV in the mailboxes of the recruiters I wanted to see the next day. In my mailbox, I found a pen from a school and chocolate from a school that was not on my radar but intrigued me a bit. So, I wrote back to her with my documents saying I would like to meet her at the sign-up session.
Saturday:
The next morning at 8:00 am I went down and I thought it would be chaos trying to get in. It really wasn't that bad and you have loads of time to move around the room. There were 2 sign up sessions so it was nice to not feel too rushed. Some of the schools had long lines, but at the most, it was 25 min. Honestly, the room cleared out after 30 minutes so I think one could have waited. However, one school I was interested in politely told me they had no more interview slots left so maybe I waited too long. They did have my note that I put in their mailbox out on the table and they remembered who I was.
Men are in a suite and tie and women are either in dresses or pants and a jacket. I opted for this with a white blouse. Some women seem a bit underdressed, but maybe that's my perception.
There were 3 schools that had my note out on the table that I had put in their box from the night before. They remembered who I was and thanked me for the note. Even if it didn't go anywhere, I do think handwritten notes attached to your CV make a difference. A few of my schools already had their positions filled, but I went to the table anyway to introduce myself as one never knows if something will come up.
One school in China was very happy I put the note in the box. I had written off the school, but the HOS was interested. I went to the school presentation and I was hoping for an email from them about an interview, but as of right now, nothing.
I went to 5 presentations and had 2 interviews that were schools not on my radar. One had sent me an email and I thought why not. The second one was a result of the chocolate in my box.
It's been a good experience thus far and learning alot. I looked around the room and wished I was only 25 and single as I would have so many options to go wherever in the world. Those folks are lucky!
I went very briefly to the cocktail hour as we opted to go for some good seafood while in Beantown. Will write more tomorrow.Good night from Beantown!!
Thought I'd give a bit of insight to the Cambridge fair. It won't come close to Shadowjack's!
Friday Night:
I arrived on Friday and staying at the hotel where the fair is. So glad I did this as when having downtime or needed a break, it's nice to be so close. That being said, it's a bit overwhelming being surrounded by both recruiters and candidates. They are next to you in the hotel room or all of us in the elevator together. Everyone has been very nice and it's been lovely chatting with others.
I did put handwritten notes, plus my ïchiro and my CV in the mailboxes of the recruiters I wanted to see the next day. In my mailbox, I found a pen from a school and chocolate from a school that was not on my radar but intrigued me a bit. So, I wrote back to her with my documents saying I would like to meet her at the sign-up session.
Saturday:
The next morning at 8:00 am I went down and I thought it would be chaos trying to get in. It really wasn't that bad and you have loads of time to move around the room. There were 2 sign up sessions so it was nice to not feel too rushed. Some of the schools had long lines, but at the most, it was 25 min. Honestly, the room cleared out after 30 minutes so I think one could have waited. However, one school I was interested in politely told me they had no more interview slots left so maybe I waited too long. They did have my note that I put in their mailbox out on the table and they remembered who I was.
Men are in a suite and tie and women are either in dresses or pants and a jacket. I opted for this with a white blouse. Some women seem a bit underdressed, but maybe that's my perception.
There were 3 schools that had my note out on the table that I had put in their box from the night before. They remembered who I was and thanked me for the note. Even if it didn't go anywhere, I do think handwritten notes attached to your CV make a difference. A few of my schools already had their positions filled, but I went to the table anyway to introduce myself as one never knows if something will come up.
One school in China was very happy I put the note in the box. I had written off the school, but the HOS was interested. I went to the school presentation and I was hoping for an email from them about an interview, but as of right now, nothing.
I went to 5 presentations and had 2 interviews that were schools not on my radar. One had sent me an email and I thought why not. The second one was a result of the chocolate in my box.
It's been a good experience thus far and learning alot. I looked around the room and wished I was only 25 and single as I would have so many options to go wherever in the world. Those folks are lucky!
I went very briefly to the cocktail hour as we opted to go for some good seafood while in Beantown. Will write more tomorrow.Good night from Beantown!!