<p>Sophomores DO usually attend this event. You are not “expected” to have an internship after your sophomore year, but it is encouraged, as you may need that experience to be a competitive applicant for your junior year internship.</p>
<p>Basically there will be a lot of booths set up for each employer and you will go around meeting the people behind the tables at each booth, shaking hands, showing your resume, and giving out business cards. It is pretty smarmy, I won’t lie. For big employers or high-profile names, there will usually be a long line of people waiting to shake the recruiters’ hands, so you may have to wait a while. For this reason, I recommend you go as early in the day as possible so that the recruiter isn’t tired of talking to people by the time you come around.</p>
<p>If you have no experience whatsoever to fill a resume, you should produce an academic resume with relevant coursework on it. If you have existing internship experience, that’s great - fill it out on your resume, print it out on nice resume paper (can be bought at the student store in the UC for like $5 per bundle) and print out some copies. </p>
<p>Note that you absolutely DO NOT print your resume on plain printer paper for these conferences. It’s horrendous etiquette to do so. Ditto with cards - if you’re going to make them yourself (IE not have the Kinko’s in the UC print them for you) then you will need to make sure they are very, very well done. Use the color laser printer on the 3rd floor of CFA and the nice cardstock bought from the art/student store to do these. If you don’t have a suit, get one immediately. There’s a GAP in Shadyside with nice womens’ suits for a good budget - probably mens’ too. You can also rent suits (as far as I know) from the career center in the basement of the UC. </p>
<p>As far as approaching people goes - usually the conversation goes something like this:</p>
<p>Recruiter: Hey there.</p>
<p>You: Hi, I’m ____ - here’s my card (smarmily hand over card)</p>
<p>(Recruiter looks at card) Okay. Great. (Small talk here)</p>
<p>You: Great! (hands over resume) I’m very interested in a position herding sheep with Microsoft’s Sheep Analysis Division. I understand you’re hiring summer interns in sheep herding.</p>
<p>Recruiter: Yeah. So I see on your resume that you have previous sheep herding experience. How adept would you say you are with long-haired sheep?</p>
<p>You: I’m very adept with long-haired sheep. In fact, I spent two years in New Zealand just herding long-haired sheep under Mr. Cool Dude - reference is below.</p>
<p>Recruiter: We’re having technical sheep herding interviews with the other Microsoft recruiters this week. Why are you looking for a position with Microsoft?</p>
<p>You: Well, I’ve got ten years of long-haired ewe herding certifications and I’m ready for a challenging atmosphere where I can fine-tune my herding skills and work in a team. I love people, and I think Microsoft will give me the opportunity to work with both sheep and people alike.</p>
<p>Recruiter: Excellent. (More small talk.) Ok, we’ll be in contact. Thank you!</p>
<p>Then either they call you for an interview or they don’t. :p</p>