Students at Weber State University had an opportunity to showcase themselves to potential employers during the second annual STEM career fair held in the Shepherd Union building ballrooms on Wednesday afternoon.
Elena Thomas, a microbiology major, had been looking forward to the STEM fair, and she volunteered so that she could have a close inside look. Thomas is hopeful to have an opportunity with one of the many companies offering internships to students.
Nathan Mason is grateful he went. “From this I might be able to get a job, even if it’s just seasonal,” he said.
Many of the businesses at the fair said that the students on this campus excel in STEM.
“We have a lot of students majoring in the science, technology, engineering and mathematics degrees. And these are in high demand for a lot of careers right now,” said JT Eborn, one of the recruiters of the STEM career fair.
When they started the fair last year, many businesses and organizations were eager to be a part of it. The STEM career fair grew from 46 booths last year to 66 this year.
Eborn said STEM degrees are very important right now. “Technology is huge right now, so we’ve got a lot of job openings that are specifically for that,” he said.
Many different companies were featured at the career fair, offering students a variety different opportunities, such as the IT department of the LDS church and the Bureau of Land Management (BLM).
Jeanette Shackelford from the BLM said she was there promoting the pathways program. The BLM is to looking to hire different types of graduates within the coming months and came to Weber State University because it has one of the most diverse student populations in Utah.
Shackelford also explained that they also offer a program where students can work with a BLM project with one of their employees and it can count for college credits.
Mike Rogers is looking for engineers to intern at Kelly Services.
“If you’re looking to get your foot in the door right out of college, that’s where we come in,” Rogers said.
With so many businesses and so many options for work, the STEM career fair offers a lot of opportunity for students looking for work after school.
