I have a confession to make.
This is the first year since 2017 that I will not be attending the Grace Hopper Conference. My relationship with this community is many years long and one that I truly cherish. From being an attendee, a sponsor representative to a committee member it has been a medley of diverse experiences. With the Grace Hopper ‘23 Conference around the corner, one role in particular that I have been receiving requests/queries about is regarding my in person experience last year. I attended the conference as a student seeking a full time role in the US.
It is a valuable and exciting experience to attend the conference and meet many inspiring and amazing people. However with more than 30,000 attending last year and a similar turn out expected this year, It is easy to get overwhelmed in such a large setting. Being well prepared for it is very important.? Therefore, I put together a few things you should know before you head to GHC in person. This article is divided into 3 broad areas of focus for readability and acts as a checklist of sorts for the optimal conference experience.??
- Fly out early - To be the most present during the conference, plan to fly out a day earlier to the start date. Usually the badge pick is opened early to avoid long queues on the day of. (Agenda
) Going early to pick up my badge allowed me to bypass the crowd the next day and to also check out the layout of the convention center before the hustle bustle.?
- Hotel - I stayed farther away from the convention center. However after experiencing the conference, the best option in terms of stay would be as close as possible. A few friends had stayed at “The Rosen Plaza” which has a connecting hallway directly into the center. It is extremely helpful as there is no commuting and provides another avenue to make valuable connections. Alternatively, there are hotels in partnership with GHC that offer rooms at a discounted price
. Check these out as well.
- Download the app - This comes in super handy during the conference. I used the app often to access the convention center map. Especially during the first day while you are still getting used to the layout.?
- Prioritize ruthlessly - There will be many sessions that will be happening in parallel and each of them are in different areas. Based on location, it can take 15 minutes to go from one session place to another. Therefore, take some time to map out your agenda in advance.? Another thing to keep in mind is - Due to limited space in each session, I recommend being in front of that session room at least 15-20 minutes before if you want the chance to listen to the talk in person. Last year, many people had trouble attending the talks they wanted. However, talks are recorded and can be viewed later for registered attendees.?
- Comfort - My biggest recommendation here - wear comfortable shoes. I hadn't anticipated the amount of walking that would be required and quickly switched out my professional flats to sneakers after the first day. To quantify, each day I hit the 10k steps goal on my watch.?
- Powerbank - Have a fully charged power bank handy with you in the event that your phone usage is higher than you expected (it will be, there are a ton of QR codes that you’ll scan)
- Water - You will be talking a lot. Stay hydrated. There are water stations in some locations within the center, but having a small bottle handy is better.
- Backpack - This one is obvious. Where else will you put your phone, power bank, bottle and notebook?
- Resume copies - Have an updated resume ready by the time you attend GHC. I also took 20 copies of my resume to hand it to recruiters in person. In my experience, it helped to have them visually see my profile to have a meaningful conversation regarding relevant opportunities. Also, keep the PDF file of your resume on your phone. Almost all company booths have a form to express interest in open opportunities where you'll upload said resume file.?
- Research - There are many companies with booths in the career fair. Choose what interests you and research them. Search on linkedin with the company name and Grace hopper as keywords, you may find representatives of the company that will be attending. Being prepared shows that you have put in the effort and sets you apart from the other attendees.?
- Make a good impression - There is a whole section in the convention center dedicated for interview booths. Companies interview candidates aligned with open roles during these few days. Hence making a good impression is important. Have your elevator pitch ready and be ready to ask good questions. I was invited to interview with a target company however the role I was interviewing for was not open to visa sponsorship (which I needed) so we couldn't move forward.?
- Make genuine connections - I will admit, the first day after seeing the career fair in person, I had a healthy dose of choice paralysis. However I had made the choice to go quality over quantity and picked a handful of companies to visit and introduce myself to. Because I narrowed down the number of companies I wanted to interact with, I had the opportunity to get to know the representatives in the booth and leave a better impression than I would have otherwise. Some of the best conversation in the career fair I had was talking about NFTs with a Nike recruiter and about being tired with a HP recruiter. Both ended up personally recommending me to relevant positions days after the conference.?
- Linkedin QR code - By far the best thing I did was to print out my linkedin QR code and stick it to my badge to allow for people to easily connect with me on Linkedin. It also made for an interesting conversation starter as they haven't seen this often.?
- After Parties - There are so many different avenues to connect and get to know folks attending GHC. Be on the lookout for invites to these. Many companies host after parties that allow for a more intimate setting to have conversations with recruiters. They are also extremely fun and vibrant.
I hope these tips enable you to have the best conference experience and make lasting memories and connections!
ML Engineer @ Sweep360 | Colgate | MoneyLion | NYU | Computer Engineering Graduate @NYU | Machine Learning Enthusiast | #ghc |#WE23
1 年I know this is a 2-month-old post but I made a very last-moment decision to attend GHC this year and this post has provided me a very helpful start!! Pranathi Alla
Software Engineer at Goldman Sachs | MS (Honors) in CS at USC | Actively Seeking Full-Time, Contract Job Opportunities | Graduate Teaching Assistant | Full Stack Developer | Software Engineer | Data Science | Java
1 年Thanks for sharing Pranathi Alla. I appreciate your help!
IIMB (Director’s Merit List) | FinTech Product Manager
1 年Hi Pranathi Alla these tips especially the LinkedIn QR code is amazing! I’m on the fence whether to attend it or not since I’m a Product Manager and wish to seek PM roles in the event. In your experience would there be product roles offered at GHC?
MS in Computer Science with a focus in Bioinformatics
1 年Thank you for sharing this! This is exactly what I was looking for.