How Is UD Career Fair Shaping Students Into Professionals?
Natalia Serpe | Contributing Writer
Pictured: The University of Dayton Career Services’ annual Spring Career & Graduate School Fair. Photo courtesy of the DaytonLocal.com
Starting somewhere is important for most, if not all, college students, as it can be an essential step in the process of beginning your career.
In the RecPlex, The University of Dayton holds a Career Fair once each semester for all students and employers. UD Career Services offers fairs, workshops, and other events. The plan is to push attendees to discuss internships, cooperative education, or even full-time job opportunities. An internship can lead you into the nuts and bolts of something you would like to pursue in the future. If you’re someone who is undecided or has a major, this fair can show you how to make connections as well as improve a wide variety of skills in professionalism.
Coordinator of the UD Career and Internship Fairs, Sarah Zamora, stated, “One thing I always want to be sure to mention to students about our Career and Internship Fairs is that there are usually opportunities to interview on campus very soon after! We have a Post-Fair Interview Day where students who sign up for interviews at the fair get to interview the very next day for open roles at organizations. I think a Career Fair is meant to connect employers with job-seekers. Pretty simple! With the thousands and thousands of job postings you can find online through many sources [Handshake, Indeed, LinkedIn, etc.], it can feel overwhelming not getting to see anyone face-to-face and actually discuss what is available to you as a job-seeker. Career Fairs give employers the ability to meet job-seekers and pitch their company and roles to them and give job-seekers the chance to learn more about employers they may have never thought to look into while having an actual human to discuss opportunities and follow up with.”
Heather Parsons, coordinator of Academic Advising, said, “I think Career Services does a phenomenal job of organizing the event and promoting it to students and employers. Regular employers return every year because they love UD students and have success in finding bright and hard-working employees. I know it’s challenging to satisfy every student’s major and career interest at the career fair, which makes it frustrating for students who may think there aren’t potential employers there for them. However, the Career Fair does give students practice in talking to others, developing a resume, and working on their professionalism. It runs very smoothly, Career Services does an amazing job setting it up. They also have headshots for students to take advantage of, food for the employers participating, scheduled interview times for students and certain companies.”
Sophomore Madisyn Payne with a major in Communications and a minor in Marketing first came to campus with an undecided major. Payne spent her first semester as a freshman trying to think of what profession suited her best. Despite doing research online and asking friends and loved ones, nothing seemed to spark any interest. Unsure of where to begin, she attended the Career Fair as a freshman in the spring.
“I visited a ton of tables at the fair that I thought could potentially work best for me. I spoke to a ton of people who briefly explained to me the gist of what that specific career looked like. I also had the opportunity to ask questions and gain good communication skills. If you’re a student that is uncertain of what you would like to major in, I highly recommend the Career Fair,” Payne said.
Another Sophomore, student Lucas Shallal with a major in Finance, came to UD knowing that he wanted to pursue this major and become successful in the future. After attending the fair, Shallal was very passionate about it and got to see certain job positions for the future, and all the responsibilities that come along with it.
Shallal said, “By far the most effective things you can get are networks or a potential internship opportunity. I know I sound like a broken record, but those two things are vital when looking for future jobs. Hiring is a competitive process, having a strong resume with good experience goes a long way. Personally, I think the Career Fair is great. I like to say, ‘You can lead a horse to water, but you can’t make it drink’. Taking advantage of your resources is important, especially at a place like UD where they provide a plethora of companies to potentially network with.”
Whether you have a major or not, the Career Fair can be a staple in your college journey. Working with employers and other staff members can really open your eyes to the world of professions. Get a jumpstart on your career and go check out the Career Fair this upcoming fall.
If you would like to take a deeper look into the UD career fair feel free to check out more information on the UD website and if you have more questions email @careerservices@udayton.edu.