It is a truth universally acknowledged that a graduate without a job doesn't want one anyway. With the roar of a booming economy in their ears, the 2000 AD crop of students will be in a buyers' market when it comes to seeking employment. They still have to go to market, however, and there is never an excuse for complacency. With this in mind there is no better place for final-year students, recent graduates or in fact anyone in third-level education to be on Tuesday, November 16th, than in the RDS for the AIESEC careers fair.
There will be 20 employers from Britain and further afield at the fair with another 65 Irish companies or Irish branches of multinationals flying their flags.
"There would be a strong emphasis on IT and finance, but pharmaceutical and other sectors are on show also," says Liam O'Gara, the fair's co-ordinator.
Graduate starting salaries vary wildly, according to O'Gara, but a realistic one is in the region of £15,000 to £19,000.
Students in any college in Ireland are welcome and local AIESEC committees are organising transport which will be either free of charge or have a nominal cost of only a few pounds.
As well as the staples of such an event - a free copy of The Irish Times and enough complementary biros to see you through your finals - would-be job seekers will find a wealth of information.
A glance at the list of companies appearing reinforces the point in going to the RDS. Domestic employers from Dunnes to Dell, British concerns such as Railtrack and Morgan Stanley, as well as a host of postgraduate educational establishments, will all be available. In addition, the Association of Graduate Careers Services in Ireland will have a stand where they will give advice on such vital areas as CV preparation, complete with comments on CVs shown to them.
"It is a great chance find out about the companies and to talk to some of them informally. You can find out what the people in a company are really like and what working in that company would really be like from chatting to people and not just getting some spiel from a booklet," O'Gara says.
The process is two-way. Some companies, especially those from Britain, might be interested in more than a simple few words with coffee and might be interested in interviewing you on the spot.
The organisers of the fair expect as many as 5,000 people, so it makes sense to come early, avoid the stampede and speak to employers when they do not feel rushed. "Nine to 10 a.m. is a good time to come for a quiet chat. It tends to get jammed at lunch time with more students on the floor. As well as that some stands are less staffed as people go for lunch," O'Gara says.
