Why Attend the ODSC Virtual Career Expo April 15th

4 min readApr 2, 2020

Career fairs that cater to one specific field are excellent for networking. You can build a list of companies and contacts, helping make decisions easier. You also gain traction for when spots open up at your ideal companies by getting on their radar.

As part of our first-ever ODSC East 2020 Virtual Conference, we will also be hosting a completely-online Virtual AI Career Expo where you’ll get all of the benefits of an in-person career fair, but from home.

Here are just a few reasons why you should check out the ODSC Virtual AI Career Expo this April 15th.

Hiring Partners at the ODSC Virtual Career Expo

40+ hiring partners will be attending the Virtual AI Career Expo this year, meaning you get an ideal variety of companies and academic institutions to speak with. Here are a few jobs that you could apply for during this expo:

Data Science Practice Lead | Spotify ($119K-$193K)
Geospatial Data Scientist | DataRobot ($105K-$115K)
Lead Data Scientist — Cyber Security | MassMutual ($124K-$204K)
Director II, Data Science, US Design | Liberty Mutual Insurance ($150K-$200K)
Data Scientist, EU Workforce Staffing | Amazon ($48K-$76K)
Lead Data Scientist — Member Analytics | Aetna ($123K-$190K)

Many more companies will be attending and looking to hire a data scientist asap! Companies include Aetna, CVS Health, Indeed, National Grid, DataRobot, Guidewell, Stanley Black & Decker, and more. Pay attention to the full list for more to come here.

Career Workshops and Presentations

A virtual event provides the same dynamic energy that an in-person event would, but you must come just as prepared and be just as willing to engage. In addition to the hiring partners and interview opportunities, the Virtual AI Career Expo will feature a number of mentor & career talks to help guide you through your journey in data science. Some talks include:

Tips for a Successful Career in Data Science: Michael Bell, PhD Director, Data Science & Analytics | Agero, Inc.
Picking the Right Program: Formats, Credentials, and MOOCs, Oh My! Aleksandar Tomic, PhD, Associate Dean, Program Director | Boston College
Transitioning Into Data Science: Laura Seaman, PhD, Machine Intelligence Scientist | Draper
Making Your Data Science Project Better by Thinking About the Use Case: Tommy Blanchard, PhD, Data Scientist | Bose Corporation
Ten Themes to Building a Happy, Healthy, and Large Data Science Team: Troy Lau, PhD Group Leader and Distinguished Member of Technical Staff: Machine Intelligence | Draper
Making a Career Transition to Data Science: Cathy Chute, Executive Director | Harvard’s Institute for Applied Computational Science
(Talk name TBD): David Meza, Senior Data Scientist | NASA

Location

Participants of the Virtual AI Career Expo can take part from anywhere in the world, and that isn’t limited to job seekers. Companies that couldn’t pick up and travel across borders to attend a career fair now have the chance to showcase what their firm has to offer. Want to change jobs? Cities? Countries? Now is your chance to find out what’s happening.

Virtual Convenience

The Virtual AI Career Expo adds a layer of convenience to what makes a career fair helpful. While the in-person factor adds a layer of depth in its own right, a virtual option allows you to slow things down a bit to focus on research a bit more.

Speed

A key function of the online platform is the ability to send your resume directly to hiring companies. These hiring partners will be able to review your resume quickly, which will lead to the opportunity to possibly have a virtual interview on-the-spot. These companies are actively hiring data scientists, and likely want to interview for open positions as quickly as possible.

Research

Many of the companies appearing at the Virtual AI Career Expo may be new to you, but they’re definitely worth learning about. These businesses and academic institutions are the ones defining the current landscape of data science and AI, and now’s your chance to work with them. For the companies you’re not familiar with, you can take the time to research them from your computer, this way you can talk to them and be ready to make a strong impression from the beginning.

Individual Attention

Speaking to reps at the virtual booths will still be a personal, 1-on-1 experience. All hiring managers will take the time to speak to you about the roles available, their companies, and take the time to learn more about you and what you could offer their team as a data scientist.

Materials and Information

Since these organizations have a lot to offer during the Virtual AI Career Expo, their virtual booths will be loaded with information. Consider this event an opportunity to gather leads for open positions in the future, too. The information they provide will be great for you to refer back to in the future.

Can prepare icebreakers ahead of time

Not everyone is comfortable with small talk and breaking the ice. By meeting online and getting right to the point of the job, you can focus on what you’re comfortable with — data science! Plus, researching these companies ahead of time will help job seekers become more confident in their ability to reach out to attending companies.

Ready to transform your career or get started off on the right foot? Register for the Virtual AI Career Expo this April 15th now!