I recently attended my first Nurse.com career fair in Los Angeles with over 700 nurses in attendance. Being fairly new to the nurse staffing industry, what struck me most was the incredible energy and enthusiasm of the nurses in attendance. There were many tenured nurses as well as new grads, all looking for new career opportunities.

With numerous  nursing positions in California currently open with Fastaff, we brought one of our senior recruiters, Titus Thomas, to the event to screen candidates on the spot. Some nurses were more prepared than others to make the most of this opportunity and walk away with a new placement.

Top 3 Career Fair Tips

1. The early bird gets the wormEarly attenders were able to have 1on1 access to our recruiter, Titus, for initial consideration for our HOT JOBS  and get all their questions answered .

2. Have your elevator speech preparedBe able to sell yourself in 30 seconds or less. Write out your accomplishments and special skills and practice your elevator speech before you get there. Here’s how.

3. Have your documents readyHave documentation/licensure current and up to date. The faster your files can be processed, the more jobs you’ll be under consideration for. This will help you land that dream job faster. Build your FastPass Profile.

In addition, do your homework on the exhibitors and target the ones that are most relevant to your career interests and get to them first to help to ensure your success. Ask good questions and show them you care enough about their company to have done the appropriate research. This will definitely help you stand out in the crowd.

Whether you plan on attending a career fair in the future or are considering it as a placement option...take charge of your destiny, be proactive, energetic and positive about your future career goals. Find a Nurse.com Career Fair near you

Cynthia Bynum is the Director of Marketing at Fastaff. You can visit her by finding her on LinkedIn and Twitter.