Attending school job fairs is a rite of passage for many upperclassmen looking for internship and full time gigs to kick off their career. But we know college students face daunting challenges during their academic school year, including heavy workloads and difficult courses.

The career fair is often scheduled for just one day and not everyone can make it. So if you’re that person, should you just wait for the next career fair and hope the schedule will work out in your favor that time?

The answer is no. Don’t wait! Here are ways you can put your name in the hat for consideration.

• Use your Career Center or our heygenius.com site: We often partner with your career center to post jobs that we are hiring for. In many cases, we have on-campus interviews right in your career center. If you don’t see job postings in your center, simply apply on our heygenius.com or our Microsoft.com/college sites.
• Attend Microsoft sponsored events: From Meet the Company Presentations to Tech Talks and Tech Fests (technology product fairs), we accept college resumes at almost all of our events. Can’t make it? Give your resume to a friend who's attending to pass along!
• If you are abroad or are at another co-op for the fall semester: Once you apply online and are selected for an interview, we can schedule the initial phone interview even if you’re in Spain! If you do well, you can wait until you return to school and conduct the second and final round on one of our Microsoft campuses then. If you have an offer deadline though, discuss with your school recruiter and we’ll try to work something out. We’ve made it simple for you to contact your school recruiter right on our site.
• Attending career fairs at other schools: Ok, we’ve seen this happen and we will always pass on your resume to your school recruiter. However, please adhere to the host school’s policy since they often do not allow students from other schools to attend. Save a little travel time and simply apply online instead!
• You’re never too early to make a connection: Even if you’re a freshman, going to Career Fairs will help you hone in what employers are looking for. 

Happy job hunting!

- Ginny