Until you interact with the companies you want to hire you, you’re just another name on a paper. Many industries, such as business and tech, are so saturated and competitive that even prospective employees with the most prestigious educations and well-rounded resumes are often overlooked. If you want to avoid being lost in the crowd, job fairs are a great way to give companies a real, human impression of who you are- rather than just a list of your accomplishments.
Contrary to popular belief, job fairs aren’t just for entry level employees (although they certainly are an excellent way to open doors of opportunity in your field). Industries are continuously evolving, and job fairs help give you the knowledge, tools, and contacts you need to stay relevant. Here’s our list of the top Bay Area job fairs happening this year.
1. Bay Area/Silicon Valley Bilingual & Diversity Fair
We all know that the job market is rapidly becoming more diverse, and many companies have a major need for bilingual employees. Not only is the ability to speak multiple languages proficiently a sought-after skill, but many companies want to diversify their brand. Obviously, in order to meet the consumer needs of a diverse customer base, they need to hire people who are comfortable communicating with different populations- and whom their customers feel understood by. Companies have to have above average cultural and language proficiency, which means hiring diverse employees.
You’ll also learn about the rapidly evolving role of diversity across industries, and how your special knowledge and skill sets can help you stand out to potential employers. And don’t think you have to be from another region or country in order to meet the hiring needs of attending companies! If you’ve been educated in bilingual majors or participated in cultural studies, that’s a major asset. If you’ve traveled personally and have lived and interacted with other cultures for periods of time, that’s an asset, too! Just being bilingual makes you a hiring priority for many companies that are changing fast to meet the needs of a diversifying population.
Of course, these are just a couple of examples- you may have any number of other qualifications that make you an excellent candidate for many featured jobs. Why not find out by attending for free?
The Bay Area/ Silicon Valley Bilingual and Diversity Job Fair will be hosting some of the top names in business, law, and education in Silicon Valley and nationwide. For diverse and bilingual professionals, it’s an opportunity to introduce yourself and circulate your resume around some of the best companies to work for in the Bay Area and the U.S.
Companies in attendance include: Ames Taping Tools, Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART), County of Santa Cruz, Defense Contract Management Agency, Jazz Pharmaceuticals, Judicial council of CA, PSAV, Pacific Gas & Electric company, San Jose-Evergreen Community College District, Stanford University Residential and Dining, Sutter Health, USPS, and Verizon.
So dress the part of the professional you are, and come explore these opportunities to gain experience in some of the most relevant industries.
This job fair takes place on August 1st- short notice, we know, but we wanted to include it on our list because it will feature top companies in a broad range of prominent industries. There’s still time to buy tickets.
Job Fair Info:
Thurs., Aug. 1st
9:30 AM- 3:00 PM
Fremont Marriott Silicon Valley
4600 Landing Parkway, Fremont, CA
2. The San Francisco Job Fair
The San Francisco Job Fair is one of the biggest, most popular job fairs in California. It happens four times per year in San Francisco, maximizing your exposure to some of the best companies to work for in and out of CA. This job fair could potentially open the door to your career in multiple capacities. For one, you’ll learn all about the attendant businesses and what their current hiring needs are. Secondly, it real time interaction with companies helps you stand out in a crowded job market. Even more excitingly, there are opportunities to be hired live at this job fair.
The job opportunities at the SF Job Fair are plentiful, as are the entry level packages offered by the hiring companies. There will be opportunities to meet and interact with representatives from companies in the following diverse industries: Accommodations, Accounting, Advertising, Aerospace, Agriculture & Agribusiness, Air Transportation, Apparel & Accessories, Auto, Banking, Beauty & Cosmetics, Biotechnology, Chemical, Communications, Computer, Construction, Consulting, Consumer Products, Education, Electronics, Employment, Energy, Entertainment & Recreation, Fashion, Financial Services, Fine Arts, Food & Beverage, Green Technology, Health, Information, Information Technology, Insurance, Journalism & News, Legal Services, Manufacturing, Media & Broadcasting, Medical Devices & Supplies, Motion Pictures & Video, Music, Pharmaceutical, Public Administration, Public Relations, Publishing, Real Estate, Retail, Service, Sports, Technology, Telecommunications, Tourism, Transportation, Travel, Utilities, Video Game, and Web Services.
Pursuing a career in business, media, marketing, finance, or technology? The SF Job Fair presents companies who are presenting a diverse range of opportunities and experiences within these fields and more.
Some of the biggest names in your industry will be seeking employees for salaried positions with room for advancement. Packages potentially include bonuses, commission, life insurance, paid company and management training, and paid holidays. There are also various opportunities for rapid career advancement, which can be a great foot to start off with in competitive industries.
Job Fair Info:
Aug. 8th, 2019 & Nov. 7th, 2019
Kimpton Sir Francis Drake Hotel
450 Powell Street
San Francisco, CA, 94102
3. Small Business Expo 2019- San Francisco
As the number of entrepreneurs, startups, and independent contractors increase, so does the need for networking. Small Business Expo is not actually a small event- far from it! It’s one of the largest and most popular business-to-business networking events in the country. It also functions as a trade show and conference for business owners, entrepreneurs, startups, and employers/employees who work for small businesses or are interested in forming one.
Small Business Expo is free to enter. It’s understood that entrepreneurship is costly enough without having to shell out hundreds and thousands for networking opportunities. It’s not just a place for new entrepreneurs to make connections that will shape the future and creative direction of their businesses- or a place for established business owners to seek hires and expansion. It’s a freeform environment for every attendee to interact and be inspired by others in their field.
It’s an opportunity to build new business relationships and shop from new vendors.
It’s a chance to participate in cutting-edge workshops and seminars, learn from top industry experts, and get insider information on new products and services relevant to your career.
The event has been such a useful resource for everyday people with big ideas across the nation, it now takes place in 17 major American Cities. It is rated as the #1 business and networking event in the country.
Although it’s free to participate in Small Business Expo, there are opportunities to upgrade your experience. “Bronze” registrars have access to Exhibitor Hall, workshops (including a bonus workshop by Powerteam International one day after the expo, speed networking, business card exchange, main stage keynote speeches, and happy hour perks.
“Silver” packages include all of that and more. There is a unique benefit to going Silver: You’ll be able to download a Lead Scanner app on your phone or tablet. The Lead Scanner allows you to scan attendee and exhibitor stats and contact information for follow-up. Of course, this upgrade also includes “skip the line” privileges for at the expo’s Biz & Beer Happy Hour.
Finally, if you go for the Gold, this exclusive package includes reserved prime seating in workshops and main stage presentation and demos. It also lets you skip the long lines in speed networking, making your first impression first (or at least before dozens of others).
Job Fair Info:
Thurs., Aug. 22, 2019
10:00 AM- 5:30 PM
The Hibernia Bank Building
1 Jones Street
San Francisco, CA 94102
4. I Heart Radio San Francisco Champions of Diversity Job Fair
I Heart Radio has partnered with ChampionsOfDiversity.org to bring America a new kind of event that will put thousands of recruiters and job seekers on the map in their industries. Champions of Diversity Media is a full-service advertising agency and multicultural events service that actively promotes diversity and multicultural events throughout the U.S., Carribean, and Canada. Now the organization is working with I Heart Radio to bring you an event with a mission to improve and evolve diverse networks and communities across the nation.
Such a broad mission can only be accomplished by facilitating and strengthening the networks between recruiters and the diversifying market of job seekers. This game-changing job fair is for not just for media professionals looking to build, expand, and diversify their careers. Although it presents invaluable networking opportunities for new industry and communications talents, it’s also a unique chance for anyone who wants to promote their business or brand across social networking technology fields. Known as I Heart’s “onsite, onair, and online career fair”, this event provides recruiters with access to and training in the latest social networking communications and recruitment technologies.
This job fair is unique in the broad, prestigious reach of its networks. Not only is it happening all over the country, but its online presence is active 30 days prior to the event. (You’ll learn more about this when we briefly cover exhibitor packages). Before the onsite career fair, recruiters will have the chance to post jobs, interact with diverse job seekers, and set up face-to-face meetings at the live event. This gives job recruiters the chance to reach an exponentially larger number of job seekers, and gives job seekers the chance to make important connections prior to the event.
Thinking of exhibiting at I Heart San Francisco Champions of Diversity Job Fair? The exhibitor package includes 30 days of unlimited job postings promoted to diverse job seekers in your state. It facilitates the best social media job posting promotion and offers a great candidate sourcing package.
Remember, your exhibitor booth exists onsite and online, exponentially expanding and diversifying your reach. You’ll be able to set up onsite meetings with job seekers. Online interaction with you gives them the opportunity to come specifically prepared to meet your interview needs and standards. With most job fairs, it’s a one-size-fits-all situation, and job seekers come with standard resumes. Despite doing the limited research about your company they have access to, job seekers usually don’t have specific knowledge of your needs and a personal feel for who you are as a company. With this groundbreaking kind of job fair backed by big names, potential employees are able to get to know you before the onsite event- and you’re able to get to know them.
Job Fair Info:
Thurs., Sept. 19, 2019
11:00 AM- 2:00 PM
Holiday Inn Golden Gateway
1500 Van Ness Ave.
San Francisco, CA 94109
5. Museums4Inclusion Job Fair
Museums4Inclusion Job Fair is an annual inclusive networking and recruitment event specifically for individuals with disabilities. Free for job seekers, this career event is an opportunity for people with disabilities to interact with managers from cultural attractions and other industries. Job seekers will also have the chance to participate in informal interviews with potential employers.
Why is to so important to host a job fair exclusively for job seekers with disabilities? In a job market that is rapidly becoming more inclusive, there are opportunities for people with disabilities at many different job fairs. However, disabilities range from all different levels of physical, mental, and emotional disabilities; therefore, larger inclusive job fairs may or may not have opportunities for everyone who is considered as having a disability. This underlines the importance of giving job seekers with disabilities a fair chance to be noticed and to display their knowledge and skill sets to different employers.
It’s no secret that over the last couple decades, the U.S. and other countries have experienced major demographic changes that affect the job market. These changes are related to race and ethnicity, age, socionomic distribution, and more. The rapid emergence of new technologies has further affected the job market in relation to changing demographics (and in general). Hiring needs are changing and evolving in relation to people with and without disabilities.
This job fair is a great opportunity for both recruiters and job seekers with disabilities to have onsite informal interviews or set up future meetings.
Job Fair Info:
Wed, Sept. 18, 2019
9:30 AM- 1:30 PM
California Academy of Sciences
55 Music Concourse Drive
San Francisco, CA 94118