A recent job fair at the University of Mary Washington attracted more than 6,000 people and halted traffic on both U.S. 1 and Interstate 95 at the U.S. 17 exit.

Janet Giles of JobZone, which holds job fairs throughout much of Virginia, has reported an increase in the number of job fairs attendees and a decrease in the number of companies that exhibit. She also said she’s been seeing people who have never lost their job before.

“You really can’t put a number on it,” remarked Mel “Kia” Ames of the IRS. “We’ve been getting applicants we wouldn’t have gotten before because of [the economy].”

Tameka Shephard of GEICO Insurance said at an earlier job fair that the company has been receiving applications from different fields than their usual pool of applicants and also from a wider range of salaries. GEICO is a regular at recruitment events in Northern Virginia thanks to corporate headquarters located in Chevy Chase and offices in Washington and Fredericksburg.

Financial talk show hosts have said that recently more jobs have opened up since the recession began. However, it’s still higher than it was last year or the year prior.

According to the U.S. Department of Labor, the nation’s unemployment rate in March 2010 was 9.7 percent, compared to 8.5 percent in March the previous year and 5.1 percent the year before that.

For students who are about to graduate and enter the workforce full-time, the prospects of finding a job in the current economic climate with so much competition for each available position can seem daunting and discouraging.

“It’s a zoo,” said Lisa Lee of Technology Associates of a job fair she attended. A colleague who had been manning the company’s exhibit with her had to go back to the office to get more company literature because they ran out in less than an hour.

Keith A. Evans, a representative of Stratford University, said a lot of what he’s seen is people looking for work only to discover the work has changed –– industries are dying and new ones are springing up –– and there are now different types of jobs that need to be filled.

To help college students increase their chances of finding a job now or when they graduate, Northern Virginia Community College is holding job fairs before the semester ends.

A job and internship fair will be held on the Alexandria campus in the Schlesinger Center Hall on April 20 from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. Businesses that plan to attend include BB&T, the YMCA, AlliedBarton Security Services, Arlington County government and police department and Bright Horizon childcare centers.

A job fair on the Woodbridge campus is scheduled for April 28 from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. For more information, contact the campus career services counselor, Dennis Sullivan, at dsullivan@nvcc.edu.

The college has a career events calendar, however it’s not up to date. As of April 16, it only had three events in February and early March listed, nothing current. Additionally, NOVA’s main events calendar did not mention either upcoming job fair as of press time.

NOVA has a page on its web site for jobs with the college (nvcc.edu/depts/hr/employment.htm).NOVA has a page on its web site (NVCC.edu) for jobs with the college at nvcc.edu under the link “Jobs at NOVA.” Unfortunately, the link to review the procedures for applying for a position and the link for other employers to post job and internship opportunities for students are both broken.
at the bottom of the page.
The career events calendar may be found at nvcc.edu/current-students/career-services/events/index.html. The college-wide events calendar may be found at nvcc.edu/calendar.

Moreover, JobZoneOnline.com has tips for jobseekers planning to attend job fairs.

Time will tell what the unemployment rate will be in March 2011, lower or higher.

By: KJ Mushung

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