The fair is over and you were a glowing success. Now it’s time to capitalise on the networking you did, those business cards you collected and CVs you handed out.
Always follow up with people you spoke to. Many of the recruiters will base their impressions of you on your continued conversation. Here are our top Do’s and Don’ts when it comes to follow-up letters:
- DO send the email within 48 hours.
- DON’T do it as you’re leaving the building: you don’t want to be too keen.
- DO make it specific: mention something from the conversation that was memorable (e.g., a project that you did your homework on).
- DON’T warble on about how amazing the science career fair was (although the Naturejobs Career Expo will be awesome).
- DO proofread all emails you send out: spelling and grammatical mistakes will completely undermine all your efforts from the day.
- DON’T send the wrong email: make sure you’ve got the name and organisation correct.
- DO attach a CV where appropriate: if you didn’t have one on the day, and the recruiter asked for one, then it would be appropriate to attach one.
- DON’T send a generic one: tailor it to the job role and company.
An example email may look like:
Dear Mr/Mrs/Dr [INSERT SURNAME],
It was great to meet you at the Naturejobs Career Expo in Boston yesterday. I’d like to thank you for taking some time to talk to me about [INSERT PROJECT NAME]; it’s a fascinating piece of work that I have been following for some time now. As I mentioned, this is a field that I am keen to enter, and your organisation appears to offer excellent opportunities for someone at my level.
I have followed your suggestion of [INSERT SUGGESTION – might be attach a CV, upload CV online etc]. I do hope this brings me one step closer to the job as a [INSERT JOB TITLE] you mentioned.
If you need anything else from me, please do not hesitate to call me at [INSERT PHONE NUMBER] or use this email address.
Yours sincerely,
[INSERT YOUR NAME]
Following these simple tips will hopefully get responses from all your conversations. And, fingers crossed, an interview or two.
Good luck!
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