Does anyone find military job fairs unsuccessful?

SGT James McCue — Wed, 26 Mar 2014 12:57:18 -0400

I recently graduated from college with a degree in mass communications and getting close to my ETS date, I find myself scrambling for a civilian job.

After four months of searching, I had little success in the job market using all kinds of tactics (LinkedIn, networking, internships and volunteer).

I recently went to a job fair in Washington D.C., and found that the majority of the recruiters were either working for a trade school/college or were uninterested in the fact that I have a college degree.

I will be attending a virtual career fair tomorrow, but have low expectations for it.

Does anyone have a similar experience and any advice?

Response by TSgt Kevin Buccola made Mar 26 at 2014 1:02 PM

TSgt Kevin Buccola — Wed, 26 Mar 2014 13:02:19 -0400

Need to check for Hiring our Heroes hiring fairs, also you should be on VAforVets website going through resume coaching etc. Make sure you have all your military records updated so you can claim for VA disability - 30% or greater gets you in a different hiring category. also check VAcareers.va.gov, need to get to work on Vonapp as well.

Response by SFC Private RallyPoint Member made Mar 26 at 2014 1:05 PM

SFC Private RallyPoint Member — Wed, 26 Mar 2014 13:05:16 -0400

The only experience I had with government job fairs was when I was a new SGT and considering getting out when I was an infantryman. I didn't have college, a clearance, or a skill outside of my Infantry training. I wanted to see what kinds of opportunities were available, but they basically told me that I could guard their buildings or sweep their floors. Blackwater was the only exception, but they wanted me to spend somewhere around $30k to attend their "basic training" which was not refundable if I didn't make it through. That is when I decided to reclass and find a job with a TS and a skill. I got Arabic Cryptolinguist, and I got what I was looking for. Now I am staying in for my career, but I hope to have better luck at the job searches when I retire. I also finished my Bachelor's degree, and I am working on a MBA.

If job fairs aren't working out, check out sites like clearancejobs and usajobs to see what is out there. Hopefully you will find something that fits your experience.

Response by SGT James Elphick made Mar 26 at 2014 1:46 PM

SGT James Elphick — Wed, 26 Mar 2014 13:46:10 -0400

Unfortunately Job Fairs have become a farce of sorts and as you stated most of the recruiters there are working for schools. The RecruitMilitary is particularly bad. I would recommend local job fairs that are not Veteran specific, you will probably have more luck as far as job fairs go, especially at local colleges. Also, and this may sound strange, I still recommend Craigslist for jobs. Finally, and you may already be doing this, when you use online job boards like Indeed or Monster, only use it as a way to find the company and possible job. Don't apply for a job through their site, be sure to go to the company site, make sure the job posting is actually still available, and apply directly.

Response by SGT James Elphick made Mar 26 at 2014 6:40 PM

SGT James Elphick — Wed, 26 Mar 2014 18:40:13 -0400

Also SGT M. you might want to check out Hero2Hired. It is a group that is specific to Reserve/National Guard. They might be more what you are looking for and I have heard good things about them.

https://h2h.jobs/

H2H - Jobs for Members of the Reserve Component and Military Spouses – Hero 2 Hired

Explore careers based on Military Skills. H2H provides Reserve, other Military and Spouses with job search, education search, resume help, and career assessment.

Response by GySgt Travis G. made Jun 20 at 2014 5:31 PM

GySgt Travis G. — Fri, 20 Jun 2014 17:31:00 -0400

I'm working with some of my fellow Marines to help Vets get hired. We actually want to help, not make money off of Veterans. I have Hiring and Networking event going on tomorrow, Sat. June 21st, in New Braunfels TX starting at 11 ending at 3. The Vetworking continues: The bar opens at 3 closing at 7.

Next month there is an event on July 19th in Kenensaw Ga, near Atlanta.

Look up information at WWW.VETCOMMANDER.COM

Go to events from the page to find info or email me directly.

Our full hiring website will go live in July.

TRAVIS GREEN
GYSGT USMC EOD (M.RET)
WWW.VETCOMMANDER.COM
EVENT OPERATIONS
[login to see]

Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Awesome Jobs.

Response by SSG Private RallyPoint Member made Jul 20 at 2014 2:46 AM

SSG Private RallyPoint Member — Sun, 20 Jul 2014 02:46:18 -0400

I went to RecruitMilitary job fairs a couple of times, and those did not lead to anything in my career field. I saw a lot of schools there, but I have my Master's already and not looking to go back to school again for a while. I have mostly used the internet for job searches. I have also gotten emails from the H2H program, with job announcements, but most of the jobs are not in my field and are not in my area so I have not had luck with those either.

Perhaps if your school holds a job fair at some point, you may have better luck there. My previous school held some job fairs and I at least had the chance to talk to some people who actually worked in the jobs they were offering, and not just a spokesperson for the company.

I have a LinkedIn profile and I signed up for a membership with the Wounded Warriors Project as well. I think the best answer is networking, and letting people know that you are looking for a job. Hopefully they might hear about something from someone and keep you in mind.