1.  Ana Eliason, Career & Internship Specialist Strommen Career & Internship Center – Augsburg College

2. Ana Eliason  Strommen Career & Internship Center  Augsburg College  612.330.1148  eliason@augsburg.edu Steps to PrepareWhat to Expect at the FairFollow upQuestions?

3. Ana Eliason  Strommen Career & Internship Center  Augsburg College  612.330.1148  eliason@augsburg.edu  Interview for opportunities for the upcoming school year  Learn more information about districts you are interested in  Explore new school districts  Great opportunity to meet with multiple school districts and build connections  Practice your professional networking skills

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5. Ana Eliason  Strommen Career & Internship Center  Augsburg College  612.330.1148  eliason@augsburg.edu  Review the list of registered school districts at: o www.mcucsa.org/mnedfair/regDistrict/regDistricts.aspx www.mcucsa.org/mnedfair/regDistrict/regDistricts.aspx o Search by state or by staffing need (elementary, secondary, etc.)  Research your priority districts o Know their mission, students they serve, curriculum o Prepare educated questions for the district representatives  Find out which districts are offering information sessions during the fair (not posted until closer to the fair): o www.mcucsa.org/mnedfair/coming.aspx www.mcucsa.org/mnedfair/coming.aspx

6. Ana Eliason  Strommen Career & Internship Center  Augsburg College  612.330.1148  eliason@augsburg.edu  91 districts/organizations registered  50 interview spaces  3 presentation rooms State/Country Alaska8 Arizona3 California1 Colorado2 Georgia1 Iowa2 Illinois3 Kansas2 Maryland2 Minnesota48 North Carolina1 North Dakota1 Nebraska2 South Carolina1 South Dakota1 Texas1 Virginia1 International China1 Korea1 Mexico1 South Korea2

7. Ana Eliason  Strommen Career & Internship Center  Augsburg College  612.330.1148  eliason@augsburg.edu  Review the districts interviewing on site: o www.mcucsa.org/mnedfair/regDistrict/districtInterviews.aspx www.mcucsa.org/mnedfair/regDistrict/districtInterviews.aspx o Contact the district representative to pre-schedule an interview o NOTE: Not all districts schedule in advance  Complete district applications prior to the fair and write to district representatives regarding your qualifications and that you will be attending the fair. o Remember many applications take several hours to complete and may include essays o Allow plenty of time to complete these applications

8. Ana Eliason  Strommen Career & Internship Center  Augsburg College  612.330.1148  eliason@augsburg.edu  Have your resume reviewed by a career counselor  Emphasis on related teaching experience: o Education & Licensure o Student teaching & Related teaching experience  Use effective skills phrases o Action verb + Skill + Results  Important topics to cover: o Implementing your own lesson plans o Working with different learning styles and diverse students o Collaborating with parents and managing student behavior o Curriculum development

9. Ana Eliason  Strommen Career & Internship Center  Augsburg College  612.330.1148  eliason@augsburg.edu  Elevator speech = 60 second introduction to who you are and what you are looking for professionally  Content is career-related, avoid personal information  Organize your speech in 3 parts: 1. Who are you? / Where are you now? o College, city/state, graduation date, major/minor, licensure 2. Where have you been? o Student teaching, related experience, volunteer, study abroad, leadership, activities 3. Where are you going? / How can you be of assistance? o Your career objective, how you can meet the needs of the district

10. Ana Eliason  Strommen Career & Internship Center  Augsburg College  612.330.1148  eliason@augsburg.edu  Practice commonly asked questions.  Provide concrete, professional examples.  Know what is important to the district.  Sample questions o Why did you choose this profession as a career? o Describe a lesson that went just as you wanted and why it went well. o How have you incorporated mandated curriculum standards into your lessons and units? o How have you differentiated your instruction to meet the needs of all students? o Describe in detail your best and worst days in a classroom.

11. Ana Eliason  Strommen Career & Internship Center  Augsburg College  612.330.1148  eliason@augsburg.edu

12.  Dress to impress! o Suit o Dress pants/skirt & blazer o Button down collared shirt o Polished shoes (something comfortable!) o Neat & professional haircut o Professional handbag

13. Ana Eliason  Strommen Career & Internship Center  Augsburg College  612.330.1148  eliason@augsburg.edu  Arrive early and plan to spend the day at the fair. o 10:00am – 3:00pm o Interviews open till 5:00pm  Know where you are going: Minneapolis Convention Center  Plan ahead for parking and nearby lunch spots o Bring money for parking and lunch

14. Ana Eliason  Strommen Career & Internship Center  Augsburg College  612.330.1148  eliason@augsburg.edu Make sure you have everything you need to be successful  Know where you are going (directions & parking)  Professional outfit  Multiple copes of your resume, printed on quality paper (you do not need a portfolio at this point)  Writing pad/folio to career resumes, extra paper, and a pen  List of your priority districts with notes gathered on each

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16. Ana Eliason  Strommen Career & Internship Center  Augsburg College  612.330.1148  eliason@augsburg.edu  Check in at the Augsburg College table to receive your name tag and final district list/map. o You MUST have a nametag to enter the career fair  Create a strategy to visit the targeted districts. o Expect long lines and be strategic with your plan o Before meeting with top districts practice approaching others first  Use the student lounge for breaks and to stay organized  Break up your day with attending district presentations

17. Ana Eliason  Strommen Career & Internship Center  Augsburg College  612.330.1148  eliason@augsburg.edu  Thousands of students…this is a competitive job fair. o The wider your options, the more opportunities you will have o If possible, consider out-of-state districts  Some districts will only be hiring for specific licensure areas o Make sure you ask about your area early on in your conversation o Remember opportunities could always come available later, so networking is still very important  Long lines…be patient and strategic with you time

18. Ana Eliason  Strommen Career & Internship Center  Augsburg College  612.330.1148  eliason@augsburg.edu  Review your district notes before approaching the table  Use a firm handshake, make eye contact, and smile  Deliver your elevator speech  Offer your resume and discuss opportunities in the district o NOTE: Some districts will have you apply online instead  Thank the representative for his/her time  Collect contact information from the district representative  After leaving the booth, take notes on your conversation to help with your thank you note

19. Ana Eliason  Strommen Career & Internship Center  Augsburg College  612.330.1148  eliason@augsburg.edu  Interview slots fill up quickly  Arrive early!  Interviews are short, only 20-30 minutes o Focus on the most relevant information, strengths, and accomplishments  Be prepared with questions to ask the district representative o Ask about the hiring timeline and process o Ask questions that demonstrate you researched the district  Schedule your interviews to allow time to reflect afterwards o What went well? o What do you wish you had said? o What questions do you still have?

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21. Ana Eliason  Strommen Career & Internship Center  Augsburg College  612.330.1148  eliason@augsburg.edu  Don’t be discouraged if you are not offered a position – many districts use the fair as an initial screening.  You will likely attend a second interview before receiving an offer for in-state and local districts. For out of state districts, your may be extended an offer that day.  If you do receive an offer don’t feel pressured to respond that day. o Let them know you would like some time to consider

22. Ana Eliason  Strommen Career & Internship Center  Augsburg College  612.330.1148  eliason@augsburg.edu  Organize the materials you collected from the fair  Keep accurate records of all the contacts you met o Consider tracking: Representative name, school district, contact information, available positions, notes on hiring process  Follow-up with thank you notes within 24-48 hours

23. Ana Eliason  Strommen Career & Internship Center  Augsburg College  612.330.1148  eliason@augsburg.edu  Arrive at the fair early to secure interview slots  Complete your research and district applications in advance  Rehearse your elevator speech  Networking, networking, networking  Stretch you boundaries – explore new districts!

24. Ana Eliason  Strommen Career & Internship Center  Augsburg College  612.330.1148  eliason@augsburg.edu