The Door Is Open. Here's How to Walk Through It.

On a Tuesday morning in April, somewhere between 9 a.m. and 1 p.m., the Biloxi Civic Center will be full of people who need workers and workers who need a chance. More than fifteen companies in the energy sector — shipbuilding, power generation, offshore services, terminals, packaging — will have hiring managers sitting at tables with open positions they are actively trying to fill. The event is free. The interviews are real. The job offers, for some people in that room, will happen the same day.

This is the 2026 Energy Expo & Job Fair, organized by the Mississippi Department of Employment Security (MDES) in coordination with the Mississippi Development Authority and the Mississippi Public Service Commission. It is the first event of its kind in Mississippi — not just another general job fair, but a sector-specific event built entirely around the energy industry and its workforce needs. Governor Tate Reeves called it "a remarkable platform for anyone eager to make a difference in the energy sector." MDES Executive Director Dr. William Ashley framed it more concretely: the state's energy projects are expanding, and they need bodies in those positions now.

Whether you are a seasoned pipefitter looking for a better contract, a recent community college graduate with an electrical certification, or someone considering a career change into one of Mississippi's fastest-growing sectors, this guide will tell you everything you need to walk in prepared and walk out with a result.

Part One: What a Job Fair Actually Does — and What It Doesn't

Let's be honest about what a job fair is and isn't, because misunderstanding the format is the fastest way to waste your time in one.

A job fair is not a networking event. It is not a career expo. It is not a place to explore vague possibilities and collect business cards. When it is run correctly — as Mississippi's Governor's Job Fair Network has been running these events since the year 2000 — a job fair is a compressed hiring event. Multiple employers, with real open positions, sit across from real candidates and conduct real first interviews in a single morning. The companies that show up at these events are not there for branding. They are there because they have positions to fill and their normal recruitment process is slower or more expensive than coming to a room where the candidates come to them.

That distinction matters enormously for how you should prepare. You are not attending a presentation. You are attending an interview — you just don't know exactly when it starts or which employer it will be with. The moment you walk up to a company's table, the evaluation has begun.

Mississippi's data on its own job fair performance is unusually transparent, which makes it possible to evaluate whether these events actually work. The Governor's Job Fair Network publishes detailed outcomes for every event it runs. Here is what the 2026 season has looked like so far, across ten job fairs held in communities across the state:

Those projected hire numbers represent something real: companies that had candidates strong enough to make a conditional offer or advance them immediately. The Meridian Area event alone — with 33 employers and 430 applicants — produced 268 projected hires. The Made in Panola Community event converted 88 same-day offers into 330 projected hires. The math behind those conversions reflects follow-up interviews, background checks, and training starts that the network tracks after each event.

There is one number these tables don't show: the people who showed up underprepared, spent four hours walking around, spoke to no one with authority, and left with nothing but a brochure. That number, at every job fair in the country, is significant. The format rewards preparation disproportionately. A well-prepared candidate who arrives with a clear target, a clean resume, and a practiced two-minute introduction has a structurally different experience than someone who shows up to "see what's out there." This guide is about making sure you're in the first group.

One more thing worth understanding: the Energy Expo on April 21 is historically unique. Jason Pope, MDES Deputy Executive Director, described it plainly — sector-specific job fairs are "a first for our Governor's Job Fair Network." This event was built from scratch to serve the energy industry specifically. The employers in that room are not a random cross-section of Mississippi businesses. They are companies operating in shipbuilding, utility generation, offshore services, liquid terminals, and industrial construction — industries that are expanding in this state right now and cannot fill their pipelines fast enough.

Part Two: The Event — Every Detail You Need to Know

The Biloxi Civic Center sits on Howard Avenue in downtown Biloxi, a short drive from the Coast's main corridors. Parking is available on-site. The venue is a large-capacity event hall suited for a multi-employer setup with clear booth organization — which means you will be able to move efficiently between employer tables if you arrive with a plan. Plan to arrive early. The first hour of any job fair is typically the most productive: hiring managers are fresh, the room is less crowded, and the candidates who arrive at 9 a.m. set the first impression while the room is still quiet.

Who Will Be in That Room

This is the complete list of confirmed employers, along with the specific positions each company is recruiting for. Study this list before you walk in the door. Identify your top two or three targets. Know their names, know what the roles require, and know what you are going to say when you sit down across from their representative.

Additional organizations present include the Biloxi Police Department (Police Officer, Dispatcher), Coast Electric, Delta Utilities, Singing River Electric, Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College, and the Mississippi Public Service Commission and Mississippi Rural Water Association — the last two providing information on sector resources rather than direct employment.

Part Three: How to Walk in Prepared and Walk Out With an Offer

The difference between candidates who receive same-day job offers at events like this and candidates who leave with a stack of brochures is almost never about qualifications. It is almost always about preparation. The companies at this expo are not looking for perfect credentials. They are looking for people who can do the work and who show up like they want the job. Here is how to be that person.

Before the Event: The Week Ahead

Research your target companies now, not the morning of. Take the company list above and identify your top three targets. Look up each company online. For Bollinger Mississippi Shipbuilding, understand that they are one of the largest shipbuilders on the Gulf Coast and their Pipe Welder A and Pipefitter A roles are skilled positions that reward certified candidates with relevant experience. For BWC Terminals, understand what liquid terminal operations involve. For SONOCO's offshore roles, understand what rotation schedules typically look like and what living aboard a vessel entails. This research is not just preparation — it is material for the conversation. Hiring managers notice immediately when a candidate knows something real about their company.

Update and print your resume — multiple copies. There are no copiers or scanners at the event. Bring at least ten printed copies. Your resume should be one page if you have less than ten years of experience, and should lead with your certifications and skills before your work history if you are applying for trades positions. If you have welding certifications, TWIC cards, OSHA certifications, or any safety training credentials, those go at the top. That is what the hiring managers at Bollinger, TIC, and Edison Chouest are scanning for first.

Pre-register at jobfairs.ms.gov. Pre-registration is not required, but it is encouraged. Print your registration confirmation and bring it to the check-in station. It is a minor administrative step that signals you planned ahead — and signals to the organizers that you are a serious candidate, which may affect how you are directed when you arrive.

If you need resume help, go to your local WIN Job Center before April 21. MDES operates WIN Job Centers across the state specifically to provide job seekers with resume assistance, interview coaching, and career counseling at no cost. If your resume hasn't been touched in a year, or if you have never written one before, go to a WIN Job Center this week. The event is Tuesday. You have time.

Prepare your two-minute introduction. When you walk up to a table, the hiring manager will ask some version of "tell me about yourself." Most candidates answer this badly — either too vague ("I'm looking for a job in energy") or too long. Prepare a clear, specific response: who you are, what your relevant experience or certification is, what specific role you are interested in, and why you want to work for that company. Practice it out loud. It feels awkward to practice a speech in your kitchen, but it is the single highest-return preparation you can do.

The Morning Of: What to Bring and How to Arrive

Dress professionally. This is stated explicitly in the official event guidance, and it is worth taking seriously. "Dress for success" at a skilled trades job fair does not mean a suit. It means clean, pressed business casual — collared shirt, clean slacks or dark jeans, closed-toe shoes. You are not dressing to impress a corporate board. You are dressing to show that you took the day seriously and respect the people on the other side of the table. That impression matters more than most candidates think.

Arrive at 9 a.m. Or as close to it as possible. The first hour is the most productive window of any job fair. Hiring managers are fresh. The room is less crowded. The candidates who arrive early get the conversations before fatigue sets in on both sides. Arriving at 11:30 for a 1 p.m. close means you get ninety minutes of an already-tired room.

During the Event: How to Work the Room

Walk in, get your bearings, and look at the layout. Identify where your target companies are before you approach anyone. Start with your second-priority target, not your first. Use that first conversation as a warm-up — you'll sharpen your introduction and get your nerves out before you walk up to the company you care most about.

When you approach a table: make eye contact, offer a handshake, state your name clearly, and immediately pivot to why you are there. "Hi, I'm [Name]. I'm a certified pipe welder with six years of experience and I saw that Bollinger is hiring for Pipe Welder A — I'd like to talk about that role." That opening takes fifteen seconds and immediately signals that you are not browsing. You are there for a specific thing.

Ask real questions. Not "what does your company do" — you should already know that from your research. Ask about the team, the schedule, the growth path, the specific project the role is tied to, or what the hiring timeline looks like. These questions communicate competence and genuine interest simultaneously.

After every meaningful conversation: write down the name of the person you spoke with, the role you discussed, and any specific instructions they gave you — follow up by email, complete this application online, call this number by Friday. Do this immediately after leaving the table, not at the end of the event. Details blur quickly in a room like this.

The Complete Do's and Don'ts

After the Event: The Follow-Up Most People Skip

This is where most job fair candidates lose positions they otherwise would have gotten. The event ends at 1 p.m. By Tuesday evening, you should have sent a brief follow-up email — or made a phone call, if you have a direct number — to every employer you had a substantive conversation with. The message does not need to be long. It needs to confirm your name, the role you discussed, your continued interest, and whatever the next step was that they told you to take.

Hiring managers at events like this see dozens of candidates in a morning. The candidate who follows up within 24 hours reinforces their memory of that conversation. The candidate who waits a week is, statistically, likely to have faded. This is not complicated. It is the one step that separates the people who get called back from the people who wonder why they didn't hear anything.

The Bottom Line

The 2026 Energy Expo & Job Fair is a real event, with real employers, hiring for real positions in one of the most active sectors in the Mississippi economy right now. The companies in that room — Bollinger, BWC Terminals, Mississippi Power, SONOCO, Edison Chouest, TIC, and the rest — are not there to build a pipeline for next year. They are there because they have open positions and they need people in them.

The event is free. The door is open. What happens next is entirely about preparation. The candidates who walk in knowing their target companies, knowing the specific roles they want, equipped with a clean resume and a practiced introduction, and ready to have a real conversation — those candidates are the ones who walk out with something. The candidates who treat it as a casual visit walk out with a brochure.

You now have everything you need. Go get the job.

This guide draws on official event information from the Mississippi Department of Employment Security, the Governor's Job Fair Network of Mississippi (jobfairs.ms.gov), the Mississippi Development Authority, and public statements from Governor Tate Reeves, MDES Executive Director Dr. William Ashley, MDA Executive Director Bill Cork, and Southern District Public Service Commissioner Wayne Carr. Job listings reflect confirmed employer participation as of publication date and may be updated by the organizers prior to the event. Mississippi Lead has no commercial relationship with any employer listed in this article.