Representatives from several businesses, big and small, filled the Garden Court and Ballroom of the Wilkinson Student Center on February 9, 2017, for the STEM Career Fair.
Students roamed the recruiters’ booths in search of potential internships and job opportunities. Sophomore McKay Evans said she had attended the STEM Career Fair multiple times before in search of internships.
“They really encourage us to have internships and just increase our experience in the actual work field,” Evans said. “I knew that STEM would be a place that would attract a lot of incredible companies, and I wanted to be exposed to that.”
In case students were not looking for internships just yet, Evans also said the fair was a perfect place to make connections.
Mason Miller from Overstock.com was one of the many recruiters, and he said students’ personality and experience stood out most when he met with students at the career fair.
“I like to get to know them and see what they’ve been studying, projects they’ve completed, and get to see if they’d be a good fit for our company culture,” Miller said.
He said while Overstock.com is looking for experience, students should still be honest about how much experience they have, and students should also have a willingness to learn. Honesty and willingness to learn are characteristics that fit well inside the company culture, according to Miller.
The next step after the career fair is to follow up on the directions recruiters gave them, Miller said.
“If we tell them, ‘Go to our careers page, and apply through that process, and add us on LinkedIn,’ and they do that—then that’s kind of a positive review,” Miller said. “It all ties in to start with making a connection.”
Austin Clark, a senior chemical engineering major, said that the STEM Career Fair was a good place to practice for a job interview.
“I’m planning on attending grad school,” Clark said. “I’m also hoping for the possibility of a job offer.”
Whether students were looking for internships or job opportunities, the STEM Career Fair was full of possibilities.