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Urban League career fair provides interview prep

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INDIANAPOLIS — Going into an interview can be intimidating, but at the National Urban League Career and Networking Fair, you can get coached and actually practice a mock interview for free.

With more than 100 exhibitors from major companies hiring locally, the National Urban League, which aims to diversify the workplace, hopes this will advance people's careers and professional development. The conference runs through 5 p.m. Saturday in Hall B at the Indiana Convention Center.

"Maybe their resume isn't together. Or maybe they're just nervous because they haven't really interviewed, they don't know what to say, they don't know the questions you should ask in the end. They don't even know who's hiring or what those folks are looking for," National Urban League vice president Wanda Jackson said.

Broad Ripple resident James Lomax Jr. said he is looking at Roche Diagnostics, and he knows he'll have to earn the opportunity.

"People just don't have the network that they needed to get these opportunities and sometimes it's just a fear and lack of confidence in oneself," Lomax Jr. said.

Creating a LinkedIn profile and having a headshot is one way people can network and learn about job opportunities online. And they'll even take the picture for you right here.

"And we have people here who will sit with you and talk to you about your LinkedIn profile and help you kind of make it right so when recruiters are looking up on LinkedIn they'll find you," Jackson said.

Hopefully building that network here, people will be picture-perfect ready to go out and get that dream job.

"People are looking for help everywhere and anywhere but then at the same time they don't know where to go," Lawrence Milton said. "The opportunities are there it's just that we need to go ahead and believe in ourselves to go get out there and actually grab it."