Students interested in opportunities after and outside of college have the opportunity to attend the career and grad school expo soon.
Taking place on Tuesday, Feb. 26 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. in the Mini Dome, the expo allows all students to get helpful information on career and job opportunities, internships and graduate school programs.
Erin Whitley, who is the outreach and employer services coordinator, explains that the expo is focused on including all students in every year.
“It’s a career and grad school expo,” Whitley said. “We’re calling it an expo instead of a career fair because it’s open to all students and all levels.”
Although the expo will help students who are trying to get a specific job, students who are not sure about what they want to pursue can come and have conversations with the employers there to get a better idea of which path they want to take. Students interested in learning about furthering their education can also benefit from attending.
“It’s more than just a career grad school fair,” Whitley said. “We will be having over 90 employers there, which is more than we’ve ever had. We have companies, and we also have quite a few grad schools that are going to be here from all over. It’s really a wide spread.”
Along with the expo, the event has set aside a time to focus on the needs and questions of freshman students. These students can come early and get a chance to establish what some of their interests and goals may be.
“We’re actually going to have a freshman preview session right before the fair,” Whitley said. “So technically it will start at 10 a.m., but the freshman preview starts at 9 a.m. That’s when freshman can come in and just chat with employers, learn more about what is available or maybe figure some interests they may have in certain fields.”
No matter what students hope to take away from this event, Whitley assures them that all their needs will be taken into consideration.
“The goal is that whatever students’ needs are, those needs are going to be met,” Whitley said. “We will also have some photographers from the ETSU department who are going to take professional photos for students for free.”
Because students will be talking to professional employers and grad school representatives, Whitley advises to students to dress the part and put their best foot forward.
“We encourage all students to dress appropriately and bring a resume if applicable,” Whitley said. “They can give those out to the employers who are there.”
With its abundant information and potential to open many doors, Whitley doesn’t want anyone to miss out on this event.
“We just encourage everyone to at least stop by,” Whitley said. “You never know how really valuable the experience can be unless you try.”
