An education and career fair provides students with an excellent way to explore all of the opportunities that lie ahead. They are able to meet representatives from a wide variety of employers and colleges, discuss job openings with them, learn more about education programs leading to these positions, meet potential mentors or peers they could connect with over time, as well as meet others at similar events.
Coordination the job fair with any Work Based Learning (WBL) activities planned for your school or district. Your WBL coordinator should consult with teachers, counselors and career advisors in identifying employers and colleges likely to appeal most strongly to students at your fair; those that appear should receive more vigorous recruitment efforts; if space permits they should also get priority when selecting booth or table locations at the fair. Creating an exhaustive list of participants including any pertinent programs they are offering is also highly advised.
Decide whether breakout sessions will be offered and, if so, what their scope will be. If breakout sessions will take place, collaborate with presenters on creating dynamic and engaging presentations to encourage student participation (resource materials are provided in the Guest Speakers chapter of this manual). Also determine how the fair will be managed to avoid too many students in breakout sessions at one time, or visiting too many employer and college exhibits at once; staggered arrival and departure times for groups of students is often used to prevent excessive congestion.