I’ve been thinking a lot about what questions to ask at a career fair, especially when it comes to internships. As I think through the process of hiring for a startup, I have come up with a series of steps that could help other founders who are trying to hire.
Preparing for the Career Fair
The first step is to read both the job description and the candidate’s resume before you get to the fair. This will give you an idea of the skills and experiences that matter for the role, so that you can tailor your conversation to candidates whose resumes look polished. Once you know what they’re claiming, you can then ask them specific questions that turn those claims into action items.
For example, if the candidate lists experience using a certain tool or workflow, you might ask, “Can you walk me through a project where you used [skill] to solve a real problem?” That way, you can find out whether they actually have that skill.
Effective Questions to Ask Candidates
At the fair, you can use similar questions but frame them as scenarios. If the position requires adaptability, you might ask, “Tell me about a time you had to learn a new skill quickly to contribute to a team project.” Then listen carefully for whether the candidate talks about how they went about learning the skill themselves or if they just handed it off to someone else.
You can also create a checklist of the must-have skills for the position and any signals you want to see about culture. While you are talking to each candidate, you can score their answers against this checklist. The more specific the answer, the better. And you should note down any red flags—like vague answers or overreliance on buzzwords—that suggest the person is polishing rather than being genuine.
If you do this work in advance, you’ll avoid asking generic questions like “What interests you about our company?” That question is likely to elicit a rehearsed response from anyone who has ever attended a career fair. But if you’ve done your homework, you’ll be able to ask pointed questions that reveal whether the candidate is truly interested in your company and whether they have the right skills.
After the fair, go back to your notes and compare what each candidate said to what they wrote on their resume. If they said something different, you’ll have a sense of whether they were lying or simply not being specific enough. Candidates who provided detailed examples are much easier to evaluate than those who simply sounded impressive.
A Practical Workflow for Startup Hiring Teams
Putting it all together, here is my practical workflow:
- Review the job description and candidate’s resume.
- Create a list of targeted questions based on the job description and candidate’s resume.
- Score responses against your checklist of desired skills and culture indicators.
- Follow up on vague answers.
- After the fair, review notes and compare evidence with job requirements.
- Prioritize candidates who gave concrete, verifiable examples.
So, for instance, if a candidate says she worked on a product launch, but doesn’t specify which one, or what her role was, or what problems she solved, you might follow up by asking, “Could you tell me more about that product launch? What did you do, and what challenges did you face?” You might even say, “We launched Product X last year; did you have anything to do with that?” If the answer is no, you’ll know to move on.