Teacher Candidates’ Q&As

1) BEFORE the Fair

  • What must I do to be able to attend the Education Career Fair 2022? Teacher candidates must do two things:  1) register through the TEO website (https://teach.educ.ubc.ca/career-fair/attendee-registration/) and 2) register with the UBC CareersOnline Website (https://ubc-csm.symplicity.com/index.php/pid334056?). See next question for steps to take to access the Career Fair.
  • I have registered but I have not received a meeting link yet.  Am I doing something wrong? You will not be sent a link.  You login into the UBC CareersOnline Fair software using this URL:  https://ubc-csm.symplicity.com/index.php/pid693400.  At the main screen click on the “Students” button, enter your CWL information, then click on the word “Events” (located on the left-hand side of the screen) and scroll down and click on “UBC Education Career Fair”.
  • What if I have difficulties registering for the BEd Career Fair through CareerFairs Online?  First,  try using this link CareersOnline. If this does not work, try following these instructions:
      1. Update and restart your browser (please note that Simplicity is not supported by Internet Explorer)
      2. Try downloading and using different browsers
      3. Try clearing browser history
      4. Try removing ad-blockers
      5. Try another computer
Note: CareersOnline updates their data from the SIS database on a weekly basis. If a teacher candidate changes their SIS information within the past week it may not be reflected in the CareerOnline system. If a teacher candidate has any inquires specific to their profile on CareersOnline, it’s best to contact UBC IT Services Support.
  • I just tried registering for Career Fair, but it says my student number has been used already. I don’t remember registering for an event before, but I may have.  If you have registered in the past for any UBC event you do not need to reregister.  You just need to use your CWL to login.  Try logging in with your CWL from here: https://ubc-csm.symplicity.com/index.php/pid769957? If you still can’t access the Fair, please email teo.careerfair@ubc.ca.
  • Help! I registered but can’t see the Education Career Fair in the left-hand corner.  If after logging in to UBC’s CareerFairs Online, you do not see the Education Career Fair icon in the left hand corner of the screen, please email: teo.careerfair@ubc.ca .
  • Is there a session to familiarize TC’s with the Career Fair software?  yes.  Plan to attend [Date TBA]. Please review the email sent from the TEO office on [Date TBA]1.  This will contain the Zoom meeting link.
  • Is it mandatory that TCs attend the [Date TBA] Career Fair training session, and/or the Career Fair itself? Although TCs are encouraged to attend the Career Fair training session and the Career Fair, attendance is not mandatory.  If a TC misses the lunch time presentation [Date TBA], a link to a recording of this session will be mounted on this blog a few hours after the session and under the tab “Teacher Candidates”.
  • I am unable to attend the January 10, 2022 (12:00-1:00 PM) Education Career Fair workshop for teacher candidates.  Will there be a recording I can view?  Yes we have recorded the session and it will be posted by January 15 here under item #1: https://blogs.ubc.ca/educareer/teacher-candidates/
  • On the morning of the Career Fair do teacher candidates need to queue up before it starts at 10:00 AM? There are no virtual lines or queues to join before the Education Career Fair starts at 10:00 AM. However once the Career Fair opens right at 10:00 AM a teacher candidate can join whichever queue they wish. Some teacher candidates warm up by visiting a smaller organization, others know exactly what they want and do not warm up (they are confident and prepared to speak with the organization’s HR people) and directly join the queue where they want to start their career. We recommend teacher candidates do not leave it too late to queue up to the larger more popular education organizations as a teacher candidate may be disappointed when the fair closes at 3:00 PM.
  • Do we need to have a resume ready and if so, how the resume should be formatted? Although not absolutely necessary, a 1 page resume is a good resource for employers, especially if they need to get in touch with you to ask more questions or conduct a longer interview. resume is not necessary.  We suggest uploading a one page resume before January 21 .
  • My resume is 4 pages long and very detailed.  What recommendations do you suggest?What you describe is closer to a CV. Most educational recruiters want a 1 page resume.  They may have 2 minutes to review your application and the longer it takes them to review your experience, accomplishments, skills, and academic background  the more likely it is they will give up and move onto another more succinct applicant. A resume should succinctly summarize and highlight key aspects and accomplishments of your experiences and education. Recommendations for succinct resumes include:
    • Don’t cram so much text on a page. It is tiring to read. Less text is more.
    • Generalize several experiences under one header and describe them as a group
    • Let readers know right away of your intent to be a [fill in grade/s and/or subject/s] teacher
    • Review some samples of teacher oriented resumes online such as those posted in this blog
  • Can I upload a resume with cover letter before Friday? Yes, teacher candidates can upload a resume when they register to the Education Career Fair 2021 event by clicking on “Attend”. A box will pop-up where they can select an uploaded resume or add a new one. Although not required, We highly recommend you do this before the fair opens at 10:00 AM.
  • If I submit a resume, should I include a cover letter? For the Education Career Fair it is best if you try to present yourself through a 1 page resume.  Employers may not have time to scroll through more than one page on the day of the Career Fair.  If you do submit a longer resume it should never be more than 2  or 3 (max) pages in length.  If you are able to add in a succinct clear cover letter and maintain the 3 page limit and maintain a visible font (11 point being the absolute smallest font) then you may consider doing so.
  • Should a teacher candidate include references in the resume they are submitting to the Career Fair, and should they approach their SA and FA for a reference before the Fair? At the time of the Career Fair, most teacher candidates’ school advisors and faculty advisors (and principals) will not not have enough observations of the teacher candidate to be able to provide a reference.  Thus teacher candidates are not recommended to  approach the SA’s and/or FA’s for a reference leading up to the Career Fair and instead are encouraged to write, “references on request” under the teacher candidate’s resume’s reference list.  (Note, many school and faculty advisors do not write reference letters even after the 10 week certification practicum, as they consider their final practicum reports as their reference letter).   However, if a teacher candidate has references who have seen the teacher candidate volunteer or work for a significant number of hours with K-12 children, and this work is completed before the teacher candidate entered the UBC BEd program, we  encourage the teacher candidate to consider including these references in their resume – at least until their 10 week certification practicum is complete.
  • How far back should a teacher candidate resume experience go back for it to be relevant?  It depends.  If you have been an ESL teacher for 20 years and you are applying for an ESL position then this is very relevant information and should be included. In other words, although current work experience relevant to the job may seem to be preferred, older experiences are valuable when they highlight your ability to meet the job requirements.
  • Should teacher Candidate include their practicum experience on their resume?  Most definitely yes – especially if the practicum helps illustrate how you are meeting job requirements.
  • Should teacher candidates only list teaching or education experience on their resume? It is wise to list anything that highlights a teacher candidate’s ability to meet the job requirements.    Usually a teacher candidate is applying for instructional positions, thus their list of teaching and education experiences will make up a good portion of the resume.  However, a music specialist (for example) may include their performance experience to illustrate their expertise in the music subject area.
  • Should a resume include specific points and information about each job a teacher candidate has worked at? Or is simply listing the jobs better (more concise)? Definitely include key accomplishments experiences, awards, etc that highlight your ability to meet specific job requirements. Moreover bring they key accomplishments alive with bulleted ‘active-language examples. If the teacher candidate is not applying to a specific job posting, they then list all their accomplishments and number then 1 to 30 and include only those which they feel best highlight their qualities and skills as a teacher.
  • Are teacher candidates expected to have several different resumes and cover letters ready for every employer that the teacher candidate is interested in? If not, how do teacher candidates write a general cover letter for the career fair?  We recommend that teacher candidates have digital copies of their cover letters ready to email their top 3 employers, and then provide a generic resume for the fair. You may not use the top 3 cover letters, but they will be ready for when you apply to these districts for specific jobs. A general cover letter can be something similar to the sample Cover Letter posted on the Career Fair Blog (see: https://blogs.ubc.ca/educareer/teacher-candidates/). You can also use and internet search engine to locate and follow the structure of 1 page (2 at the max) teaching cover letter examples.
  • What is a ‘5-minute conversation’?  Is it like a job interview?  During the Career Fair you can sign up for an individual meeting (“conversation”) with an employer. This conversation is usually preset by the employer to last 5 minutes.  It is set up so you and the employer can get to know each other and begin to sense if there is a fit between your skills/knowledge/attitudes/aspirations and the employer’s employment and community opportunities. These 5 minute conversations are not like a formal interviews, although employers can follow these 5 minute interviews with a longer job-interview-like conversations.
  • Should I prepare to answer/ask employers questions? Absolutely. Some popular questions that employers ask during a 5 minute conversation are:
      • Why did you decide to become a teacher/work with children?
      • What subject or grades have you taught/do you wish to teach?
      • Why are you interested in our district?
      • Are you open to teaching multiple grades?  Why/why not?
      • Are you open to teaching subjects outside your grade or specialization level? Why/why not?
      • Name two ways you motivate students?
      • Describe a time when you worked with a team to solve a problem.Additionally, it is always wise to have some question of your own for employers.  Such as:
      • What are some of the initiative in your district?
      • How involved are parents in the school?
      • What are your districts/organizations’ greatest strengths?
      • What are your districts/organizations greatest challenges?
      • What FTE loads do most new teacher start with?
      • Please describe the mentoring support available to new teachers in your district?
      • What is the estimated time a newly hired teacher stays on the TOC list?

Some questions you may want to ask employers during your conversation:

      • Do you have a teacher mentoring support program in your school/district for new teachers? How does this program support new teachers?
      • What types of continuing education is there for new and experienced teachers?
      • What steps have been taken to encourage professional and social interactions amongst the faculty (teachers/staff/principals) in your school/s.
      • What is the average class size?
      • What are the school’s/district’s strengths/challenges?
      • Please describe the PTA’s role in the school?
      • Is there support coming from the local community?. Please describe.
      • What measures is/are your school/s taking to promote truth and reconciliation?
      • What anti-bulling measures does the school/district employ?
      • What do you believe makes your schools/district unique and one to work in, and one that makes it a privilege to come to work every day?
      • I’ve read the district’s mission statement and reviewed the current goals.  I’m wondering how these are unfolding (have unfolded) and, if the district will be developing these and or new goals in the near future, and if so what might these be?
      • I was intrigued to learn that your school/district has embraced the [policy, approach, program, etc] and I was hoping you could explain a little more on how teachers have integrated this into their instruction.
  • Should I Make a Future account prior to the Career Fair?  It is not necessary to create a Make a Future account before the Career Fair.  However, visiting the district’s employment site and reviewing the job opportunities on Make a Future (especially for employers you are interested in) is a good way to build connections with the employer as well as make for conversation starters.
  • I’m in IB, and I’d love to work at a public, secondary IB school. What is an appropriate way to make contact with IB programs? It depends. Some IB schools advertise on the Make a Future site and you would contact them via the Make a Future instructions. Others recruit directly and thus you would phone the school (or head office) directly. Finally the IB organization has its own job portal which you can access here: https://www.tes.com/en-ca/jobs/browse/international?utm_source=ib-org&utm_medium=webtext&utm_campaign=ib-partner-webtext&utm_content=ib-website-tes-b2c-text-jun-2018]
  • Will I have to dress formally for the event? When you enter a 1:1 meeting, you will be meeting principals, district principles, human resource managers, superintendents etc.  Most will all be dressed semi formally to formally.  It is always best to dress the same as its hard to dress up once your video chat camera is activated.
  • Do I need to create a Zoom or MS Teams account in preparation for the Career Fair, or will employers be providing links accessible to anyone who has downloaded Zoom or MS Teams? Most employers will be using their organization’s Zoom or MS Teams video conferencing software and they will provide teacher candidates with instructions on how to connect (including their Zoom or MS Teams link) when it is your time to join the booth. Teacher candidates can download Zoom or Teams in advance to minimize connection delays, however they can also join a Zoom or Teams meeting from any device, whether or not they have downloaded Zoom or Teams, or whether they have a Zoom or Teams account. They would just click on the link the employer provides, and that opens a web page where they will (usually) see two choices: Download the app for free (e.g., MS Teams or Zoom) or join through the web.   Teacher candidates with older devices are recommended to borrow a newer computer or laptop, or buddy-up on the Career Fair Day with someone who has a newer computer or laptop
  • I understand that to join a chat with an employer, an external video conferencing software will be used. Should I create a Zoom account in preparation for the date, or will employers be providing join links accessible to anyone who has downloaded Zoom?  You could download and create a Zoom account in advance if you’d like to. Most programs (e.g. Microsoft Teams, Zoom) allow you to join via web browser as a guest without creating an account. Keith, you could also view the entire list of representatives to scan which video conferencing software they will be using, and communicate this in advance to the students so they are aware and can create an account (and download software) in advance if desired..
  • My Microsoft Teams account is under a different email (UBC student) than the one on UBC Careers (this gmail account is on UBC Careers and on my registration for the event). Will this be an issue leading up to the event? This shouldn’t be an issue. During the virtual fair, you will keep your CareersOnline tab open and open a new tab to the representative’s meeting link.
  • Currently, UBC Careers has automatically filled in and locked (so I cannot change it) an educational experience where my program is “Biological Sciences” and my graduation date is “December 2020 (or some erroneous date).” Is this meant to be listed on UBC Careers for the upcoming fair based on my responses from the external registration? If not, how should I go about changing it? Symplicity (the software running the BEd Career Fair) is supposed to sync with SSC. However, if it is incorrect or requires a change, please inform the TEO Career Fair team by emailing teo.careerfair@ubc.ca  before 12:00 PM January 19, 2022.
  • Currently, the UBC CareersOnline website has automatically filled-in and locked (so I cannot make changes) information into the system for me. For example, my education experience is stated as “Biological Sciences” and my graduation date is “December 2020.” Both are incorrect. Is this information meant to be listed on UBC Careers for the upcoming fair based on my responses from the external registration? If not, how should I go about changing it? CareersOnline student data is updated weekly from SSIC data base, and can only be altered through SSIC. If it is less than a week before the Career Fair, teacher candidates will be unable to change their SSIC information time for the Fair, and are encouraged to remind employers that the most current and correct information is listed on their resume (if the TC provides one).

2) DURING the Fair

  • I just tried registering for Career Fair, but it says my student number has been used already. I don’t remember registering for an event before, but I may have. If you have registered in the past for any UBC event you do not need to reregister.  You just need to use your CWL to login.  Try logging in with your CWL from here: https://ubc-csm.symplicity.com/index.php/pid769957? If you still can’t access the Fair, please email teo.careerfair@ubc.ca.
  • I have a spinning wheel and cannot access Simplicity on the day of the fair?  What can I do?  Sometimes the technology interferes with your computer’s ability to connect to Simplicity.  Try the following:
      • Shut down and restart your browser
      • Try another browser (Firefox, Chrome Safari) – NOTE Explore does not function with Simplicity
      • Update your browser
      • Restart your chat software (Zoom, MS Teams etc)
      • Update your chat software
      • Turn off your ad blocker
      • Try another computer
  • I need help joining and or using the Career Fair.  Is there help?  Yes! On the day of the fair from 9-11:00 AM please email teo.careerfair@ubc.ca.
  • Help!  I don’t know which employer to start with?  Do you have any recommendations? If I was a Teacher Candidate and did not know where to start, I would recommend visiting the Make a Future organization first. They are attending the Career Fair and they post a large number of the independent, private, and public BC school district jobs (as well as national and international jobs).  Thus Make a Future is able to answer many of your questions around types of jobs and how to find them (and how to use their website here: https://www.makeafuture.ca/). This information may help teacher candidates narrow their search for which districts to visit during the fair. After that, teacher candidates are recommended to: 1) peruse the list of Career Fair presenters (See #3 at https://blogs.ubc.ca/educareer/teacher-candidates/) and go where their hearts take them (e.g.., some organizations are not schools or school districts), and 2) then visit an employer that is not a ‘must visit’. You can use these initial interactions to get used to the Simplicity software, and sharpen up your interviewing skills.  IF you;re feeling a little self-conscious or your mornign coffee hasn’t kicked in,, consider attending a group presentation.  This will not only give you answers to some of your questions but it will help you generate questions specific to that school/district/organization for when you finally queue up for a 1-on-1 session with the employer.  Finally, remember this is a time to practice speaking with districts and getting to know who/what they are after – great information to know if/when a teacher candidate is applying at a later date.
  • I’m cued and waiting for an employer and they have come available but I’m in a group chat!  What can I do?  To avoid not being seen by the employer as “available” when you are up next in an employer’s queue  we encourage you to set your status to offline.  You may also cancel yourself in the queue and queue up later.