Getting ahead

Annual Job, Internship, and Grad School Fair to jumpstart student careers

With so much emphasis on obtaining a degree, college students sometimes forget employers are not only looking for academic achievement, but also real-world experience. The University of Idaho Career Center wants to remind students of this fact by hosting the annual Job, Internship and Grad School fair from 2 to 6 p.m. Wednesday in the Student Union Building.

The event’s premier sponsors include The Boeing Company, ConAgra Foods, F5 Networks, J.R. Simplot Company, MWI Veterinary Supply, the Peace Corps and the U.S. Marine Corps Officer Selection Team. However, the fair is not limited to these companies — over 100 separate entities will send representatives to UI to search for potential employees, interns and grad students, said John Mangiantini, manager of employer relations and communications for the Career Center.

“There’s something for every major,” he said. “If you go to the ‘Hire a Vandal’ website, you can see through the Career Center tab all of the registered companies and types of businesses and majors they are looking for.”

Mangiantini said UI students should attend the event to jumpstart a career for down-the-road success. He said students need to start networking now, as opposed to waiting until senior year and beyond. Networking includes building strong relationships and making good first impressions, he said.

Attire for the fair is business professional, and it’s recommended students bring a resume and business cards, if applicable. 

“Some businesses don’t take resumes, but they all take cards, and when they get home, they remember who you were,” Mangiantini said.

A common misconception of the event is that it’s strictly for upperclassmen, Mangiantini said. However, as there is something for every major, and something for students of any age. Although it may be more difficult to get an internship as a freshman, he said building a network can help students land internships and careers in the future.

Mangiantini said students who display solid interpersonal skills and leadership experience could leave a lasting impression on potential employers.

“(Businesses) very much value leadership experience,” he said. “Whether it’s in your living group, an organization of some sort that’s sanctioned by student involvement, volunteering — those kinds of things show the company that you have leadership skills. So getting leadership experience while you’re in school is a very, very good thing.”

Students who feel overwhelmed by the number of booths at the fair and can’t decide who to talk to are more than welcome to talk to the Career Center, as they are familiar with the event and will be able to recommend booths that might be a good fit, Mangiantini said.

“We put a student in MWI Vet Supply last year that wasn’t an ag major,” he said. “She’d never heard of them before, and she went and applied and beat out a bunch of people that were ag majors, and she was a human resources major.”

He said each participating company has different criteria and can offer varying opportunities to students.

“Some companies are GPA driven, but others are not. They’re more interested in the human being — in the person,” he said. “If you go up and wow them with your interpersonal skills and you have the major or one of the majors they’re looking for, a lot of companies are hiring for fit — not for education, because not every company is a fit for every person.”

Karter Krasselt can be reached at [email protected]

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