Designing disability inclusive career fairs: A guide for career fair organizers, job seekers, employers, and other collaborators

Career fairs, or job fairs, are events that connect employers and job seekers, offering opportunities to learn about companies and open positions. They play a crucial role in introducing job seekers to new career paths, expanding professional networks, boosting confidence, and launching careers. Despite their benefits, career fairs are often not accessible or inclusive for job seekers with disabilities, creating significant barriers to employment.

Accessibility in this context means ensuring that everyone can participate without encountering social, communication, technological, or physical obstacles. Inclusion means that all participants feel welcomed, respected, and valued. The current lack of accessibility and inclusivity in many career fairs hinders equal opportunities for all job seekers.

This guide aims to help organizers make career fairs more accessible and inclusive, even in settings with limited resources. Achieving this requires careful planning, flexibility, and collaboration. 

The guide is structured into four main sections:

1. Know Your Participants – Offers advice on how to understand and work with job seekers, employers, and collaborators.
2. Event Structure – Covers planning and implementing an inclusive career fair, from initial design to execution.
3. Logistics, Coordination, & Communication – Provides tips on event promotion, registration, accessibility planning, and role assignment.
4. Resources – Lists supplementary materials beyond the guide itself.

This guide is primarily intended for career fair organizers, especially those working in post-secondary institutions such as colleges, universities, and training centers. However, its principles are applicable across various settings. It encourages organizers to use the guidance to better prepare all participants—job seekers, employers, and collaborators—for a successful and inclusive career fair experience.