Students packed and scurried to the Student Center Ballroom in hopes of obtaining an internship or job with one of more than 30 companies that represented the Diversity Career Fair that took place last Thursday.
This was the sixth year of the Diversity Career Fair hosted by the University of Advising and Career Development Center.
Barbara Jones, senior corporate relation manager at the UACDC, discussed why this career fair has been going on for six consecutive years.
Senior Stephanie Williams, majoring in social work, was one of many students at the career fair when the doors opened at noon.
Williams said she was attending the fair to see what markets and avenues she could apply for. “I’ve been looking for a job for three months,” she said.
The employers were generally very happy with the student turnout and the overall professionalism of the students.
“…I usually hit a homerun when I put EMU candidates on an interview list [for Blue Cross],” Jody Jones from Blue Cross said.
“EMU is one of our feeder schools,” said Brandis Taylor of City Year, an organization molding youth community service with corporate sponsorship. “Eastern really supports service learning and so a lot of applicants from Eastern embody what we’re looking for.”
iConnect, a small company based in Ann Arbor, was one of the companies that was looking to hire a full-time employee.
“We have met with and spoke with some very interesting people and have people we are interested in,” said Kelli Long-Sisco of iConnect.
Before the start of the career fair, the Michigan Civil Service Commission put together a free and short presentation on “How to Apply for a Job with the State of Michigan.”
“Many departments have workers eligible to retire…[the] state of Michigan could be on hiring spree,” Michigan Representative Angela Shelby said.“We [State of Michigan] believe we are on the verge of intense hiring.”
The presentation also included tips for aspiring job seekers.
“Tailor your application to the job you’re applying for,” Shelby said. “It is the interview that gets you the job and the application that gets you the interview.”
State Personnel Director Jeremy Stevens stated 3,000 to 6,000 Michigan employees are expected to retire.
“Over the last 10 years, the state of Michigan has gone from 72,000 to 52,000 employees with projected retirements, we are going to have to fill a significant number of jobs,” Stevens said as he went to give advice to job applicants. “Every job we post has hundreds of people applying, not every student is as detailed as they could be [on the job application].”
The career fair provided recent graduates and students a chance for face time with company representatives and to hand in resumes to companies.
“I think about job hunting 75 percent of the day,” Danyelle Felder, a recent EMU graduate said. “Most of my job opportunities come from job fairs and my own effort.”
A lot of students attended the fair in hopes of obtaining an internship.
“I am here to get an internship… not really optimistic,” Vin Duong, an accounting graduate student said.
Junior Terrance Bishop also attended to find an internship, but he was somewhat anxious.
“… I am a little nervous about not finding an internship because most employers are downsizing,” Bishop said.
Other students also showed the same apprehension when it came to getting internships or jobs.
“It is tough for recent grads without having experience,” said Neil Woolf, a 2010 EMU graduate.
“[The] job field is so deep,” Felder said. “You have many people with more experience [than a recent graduate]. There are jobs out there, but it’s hard to obtain them.”
“If it is anybody’s market, it is an employer’s market,” said Dave Wurtsmith, an April 2010 EMU graduate.
Since this is an employer’s market, what can job applicants and hunters do to improve their chances?
Several company representatives had some helpful advice for soon-to-be graduating students or current job seekers.
First Investors employee and current EMU graduate student Stephanie Boles talked about a common mistake made.
“Sometimes newer grads come off as too aggressive, asking us ‘When will you be calling?’ It is all about not being so direct … We’re very selective in the job candidate process,” Boles said.
“Proofread the resumes, check for misspelled words, [and] make sure it is accurate with references,” said Rob Moore, vice president of human resources for Central Distribution. “You want to sell yourself, brag about yourself on your resume.”
Also employers attributed interview tips for the job hunters out there.
“Dress professionally; I have had [interviewees] come in shorts, and one time, profanity on their shirt,” Moore said. “Interviews are not easy, they’re intimidating and you’re nervous.”
Visit the UACDC in room 200 of McKenney Hall for career help including job seeking, resume building and many other career tools offered.
