Spotlight Online for Career Services Professionals, January 6, 2010 

Results of NACE’s 2009 Career Services Benchmark Survey for Four-Year Colleges and Universities indicate that fewer employers—and seniors—took part in campus career fairs for the 2008-09 academic year. 

Overall, an average of approximately 194 organizations took part in respondents’ fairs in 2008-09; in comparison, an average of nearly 214 did so in 2007-08. 

Attendance among seniors also dipped: On average, 34.6 percent percent of seniors attended respondents’ 2008-09 career fairs while 35.5 6 percent did so in 2007-08. 

Other highlights include: 

• More than 92 percent of the career centers responding reported sponsoring career fairs; on average, respondents hosted 3.7 fairs per academic year.  
• Not surprisingly, the larger the school, the more fairs. Schools with fewer than 1,000 students sponsored an average of two fairs, while those with enrollments exceeding 20,000 hosted 7.6 fairs on average. 

The survey was conducted September 9 – November 30, 2009. The survey was distributed to 1,389 NACE college members; 557, or 40.1 percent, responded. The survey report will be released later this month; respondents will receive a complimentary copy. A research brief, featuring highlights from the survey, will be available to all members.