Weber State University students will have the opportunity to meet with recruiters from more than 80 employers from within Utah and across the nation. The Career & Internship Fair will be held in the Shepherd Union Ballrooms on Jan. 22 from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m.
Winn Stanger, director of Career Services, encourages students to come as early as possible because, although it is rare, some employers may leave before 2 p.m. if they have a prior engagement. He also suggests students treat the Career Fair as similar to a job interview.
“Students should wear business attire so they can stand out to recruiters,” Stanger said, “bring their resume, bring a notepad to record any notes, make sure to get a business card from the companies they are interested in, and make sure they drop a thank-you note for coming to the fair.”
Pat Wheeler, coordinator of recruitment and career development for the Goddard School of Business & Economics, also said students should research the companies they’re interested in before speaking with them at the fair.
“You do not want to go up to a company and say, ‘So what do you do?’ Do your homework so you can have an intelligent conversation with them.”
The fair offers students the chance to meet decision-makers from companies.
“I have had many students over the years that have walked out of the Career Fair with offers in hand or offers for interviews,” Wheeler said.
Career Services, located in the Student Services Building, focuses on bringing in companies WSU has partnerships with.
“Many of the companies are alumni who come back to hire our graduates,” Stanger said. “Many of them have hired graduates previously.”
Stanger also said Career Services focuses on bringing in companies that will have jobs or internships available to accommodate multiple majors.
“There will be opportunities for all seven different colleges from Weber State,” he said.
Stanger said he was particularly excited about the Xi3 Corporation, which produces compact computers in Salt Lake City; MultiView Inc., an online advertising company located in Draper; and L-3 Communications, Communication Systems West, a defense contractor located in North Salt Lake.
Stanger said there is no doubt business and technology have more direct job opportunities than many other areas, but many companies hire from multiple majors and are looking for the right person, not necessarily the right major.
Wheeler said the Career Fair gives business students the opportunity to network face-to-face with employers and allows the companies a chance to get to know the students beyond their resumes.
“I recommend all business majors attend,” Wheeler said. “Freshmen and sophomores can begin networking and building a relationship with a company each year until they are ready to participate in an internship.”
Wheeler suggested some of the best companies for business majors would be the ATK Aerospace Group, the world’s top producer of solid rock propulsion systems; Barnes Aerospace, the Management & Training Corporation; the EMC Corporation; Intermountain Healthcare; the Northwestern Mutual Financial Network, and Toyota Motor Sales. Stanger mentioned that the Northwestern Mutual Financial Network “has been rated as having some of the top internship opportunities as well as jobs.”
Student senate president Brady Harris said he believes the Career Fair is “a great opportunity for students who know what they want to do.” However, he also said he believes there is a great advantage for students who do not know what career path they want to take.
“You can go to the Career Fair and talk about careers with people to see what you need to do to steer yourself towards the career you want,” he said, “when you find something that really interests you.”
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