Students ‘Spring’ into jobs

Career Services will be hosting the annual Spring Career Fair in the Leggett and Platt Athletic Center on March 7 from 10 am to 2 pm. The event is free to students and will bring in companies and employers from around the area looking to recruit new employees.

According to Director of Career Services, Nicole Brown 75 employers have registered to attend the event with an expectation of more than 100. Attending employers will be looking for individuals to fill internships, full-time and part-time positions as well as some summer positions.

“Just about any industry you can think of will be at the career fair,” Brown said. An up-to-date list is available on the Career Services web site under the events tab.

According to Brown, employers pay to attend this event which gives them a vested interest in putting their best foot forward.

“The great thing is that the employers attending these events are fully prepared to hire college students. So they expect to hire people that don’t necessarily have a lot of experience,” Brown said.

Brown said often students see hospitals and think they are only looking for doctors and nurses when in fact they hire a great many of business and tech majors. Brown emphasized that students need to talk to as many employers as they can and often they will be surprised where their major will fit.

“When you are going to a career fair you need to look like you’re wanting to be hired,” said Jake Messer, freshman psychology major and student worker for Career Services.

Brown said students attending the career fair should be dressed professionally and have a resume in hand as well as a general cover letter.

“Students should come expecting to get a job that day,” Brown said.

Brown said she hears the same story every year of how a student just wanted to check out the Career Fair only to find an employer they really wanted to talk with, unfortunately the student was not dressed appropriately and didn’t have a current resume in hand.

“That is a huge myth for students who think they shouldn’t go to a career fair until they are getting ready to graduate,” Brown said.

Many of the same employers attend every year ready to hire full-time positions. It is a good way to get your face and name out there even if you are not ready for a full-time position, Brown said.

Career Services will be offering several smaller events the week leading up to the Spring Career Fair to help students prepare.

Additional information can be found on the Career Services website or by stopping by their office on the second floor of Spiva Library.