The Spring 2021 Business, Industry and Technology (BIT) Virtual Career Fair will be held from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Thursday. There will be 98 employers attending the fair for students studying business, liberal arts and sciences and human sciences.

The People to People Career Fair will be held virtually from 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Tuesday. There are a total of 63 employers registered for the People to People Career Fair. Students will be able to browse full-time employment opportunities and internships in multiple fields such as hospitality, social services and government.

Brooke Long, career coordinator and member of the career fair committee, said that although no prior registration is required, there are benefits to registering on CyHire before Thursday.

“As soon as you register as a student, your resume is available for employers to view at that point […] so they are able to contact you before the career fair takes place,” Long said.

Spring career fairs generally host around 2,000 students every year, and Long said they are expecting the same amount this year despite the fair being virtual.

“In the fall, we really didn’t see a noticeable drop in attendance compared to a fall 2019 career fair event […] so hopefully that trend continues and we see around [2000 students],” Long said.

Long also said the career fair committee did more outreach to employers than usual this year to ensure there were opportunities for students in all industries and majors. In general, Long said there will be more relatively small businesses and projects along with the typical visitors.

“I would say that this spring is pretty unique compared to previous ones because we do have a lot of employers where this is their first time attending [an Iowa State] career fair,” Long said.

Long advises students attending the BIT career fair to study the businesses they are interested in working for beforehand. She said students should know what the business does and the qualities and experiences they’re looking for in an applicant, so the student can mention the ones they have while speaking to the representatives.

“Over and over employers tell us that the way students can make an impression on them is based on the student’s knowledge of what it is that [the firm does],” Long said.

The People to People Career Fair will also be conducted virtually through the CyHire platform. It is the first time the People to People Career Fair will use CyHire.

“Schedule an appointment with your career services office to discuss your resume and career fair preparation, […] know the location of an organization, what they do, any relevant openings they have, and why you are interested,” the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences website read.

The College of Liberal Arts and Sciences encourages students to prepare and research what fields they are interested in before the career fair, ask recruiters questions and spend a couple of hours exploring what the fair offers.

“Don’t be nervous or intimidated of the virtual career fairs or employers. These events are taking place for you (the student) to gain experience and opportunities. There is no harm in attending and seeing what happens,” Lexi Elliot, LAS Career Service Coordinator, said.

To learn how to register, go to the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences website.