The vast majority of recruitment nowadays happens electronically, via "I-know-a-guy" connections or on our jobs board, but there's still something to be said for the humble job fair. The human element, for one. Desperation is more effective in person.
Most job fairs in Shanghai are targeted at locals. Foreigners are sort of a pain in the ass to hire. But, there're options out there for expat jobseekers. Without further ado...
WeWork Creator Awards
WeWork, the hyper-invested coworking space provider, is putting on an awards show for companies in seven countries. The finalists go to New York to fight for the title of Iron Chef. The China edition is happening in Shanghai, and it includes talks, masterclasses, a pop-up-market and, crucially, a jobs fair.
Around 40-50 companies are attending, including Lululemon, Starbucks, Seesaw Coffee, Discovery Channel, Chinaaccelerator, CTrip, and Make A Wish. They're expecting 2,000 attendees at this event, easily making it one of the largest job fairs we've heard of.
Getting In
RSVP on their website (scroll down to "Next Stop: Shanghai" and hit RSVP). Ignore the application deadline bit, that's for the Creator Awards, not the jobs fairs. Entry gets you into the whole event, not just the job fair, so... y'know... networking.
When: 5-8pm, April 12, 2018
Where: West Bund Art Center
ChinaJob's Job Fair for Foreigners
The ChinaJob's Fair for Foreigners, organized by the Chinese government, has been running two fairs (April/November) for the last 10 years. It's specifically for foreigners, and pretty much only Chinese companies attend. The one this April will have about 40 companies attending, including CCTV and CRI, but you can expect a lot of English teaching centers and agencies. They say previous fairs have attracted around 200 candidates.
Getting In
There's a "register now" button on their website, and you'll have to provide some information about your major, your work experience, nationality, expected job, etc., but after that, you get a QR code and you're in. Make sure you tick "Shanghai" at the top.
When: 10am-4pm, April 14, 2018
Where: 3/F, Zurich Hall, Swissotel Grand Shanghai
People Squared x Chinaccelerator Job Fair
Coworking space provider People Squared ("P2") and Chinaccelerator are holding a jobs fair for companies in their co-working spaces. P2's already held three, and they've got a plan for quarterly fairs, with the next one on April 1 and then sometime in July or August.
They've got 25 companies attending in April, all internet product start-ups, all roughly 2-3 years old, all resident in P2. Companies like Dianshu, Lushu and Robin 8. They're looking for expats and locals with an education in technical development, marketing, sales and online operations, and experience requirements aren't set; in the past they held separate events for graduates, but this time, everyone's in the same showboat.
Getting In
Hit the giant "Sign Up Now" on their eventbank page. You'll have to create a profile, but no need to upload a CV or anything like that. P2 says that if candidates don't find themselves a company they like on the day, they'll take their CV and pass it around the offices. How thoughtful.
When: 1pm, April 1, 2018
Where: People Squared (Yuyuan Lu)
Explore CRS
There's an annual job fair in Shanghai targeted at accredited, fully-certified educators run by Explore CRS, an international teacher recruitment agency. They just had their sixth one in January, and the next one's not until January 2019. More information about that on their website.
Chambers of Commerce Job Fairs
Some of Shanghai's Chambers of Commerce have some sort of fair, though regularity and scope vary greatly. Check our Chambers of Commerce tag and get in touch to find out more. Meanwhile, here're two good ones!
Swedish Career Fair
Held annually for about four years, this one's organized by the Swedish Young Professionals, the youth arm of the Swedish Chamber of Commerce and not, unfortunately, a rad indie band. It's open to anyone, and they attract some pretty sweet companies like IKEA, H&M, Volvo and Sandvik.
Getting In
Sign up via their website for some more info, or just go straight to their eventbank page.
When: 10am-5pm, April 7, 2018
Where: Four Seasons Hotel Puxi
Sino-German Job Fair
Running regularly since 2007, this'll be their 20th iteration. Organized by the German Center, they've attracted companies like Volkswagen and world's biggest industrial gas supplier Linde Group in the past. A lot of mechanical/electrical engineering and automobile companies! Their last job fair in November attracted 39 companies and 923 visitors according to the "Survey Tab" on their website. Precision.
Getting In
Sign up via their Zhihuihuiwu link right here, though it's all in Chinese. An entry fee of 30rmb is charged onsite.
When: 9am-4.30pm March 30 & 10am-3pm March 31, 2018
Where: German Centre for Industry and Trade Shanghai