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While he was a student at Lafayette, Reco Collins ’05 took advantage of opportunities to meet with potential employees at the annual career fairs offered by Career Services. It was at one of those fairs that he was first introduced to M & T Bank. “It was a positive first impression,” Collins recalls.
On Wednesday evening, he was back at the Career Fair in Marquis Hall, this time representing M & T Bank and talking to current Lafayette students about the Management Development Program that the company offers new employees. Collins went through the year-long training program when he was initially hired by the bank, so he was well-prepared to explain it to the students who approached him at the fair.
M & T Bank was one of 65 firms that attended the event. Employers such as Accenture, Air Products & Chemicals, Bayer Diagnostics, Disney, Exxon Mobil, GlaxoSmithKline, IBM, and Johnson & Johnson were on hand to talk to students about internships and career opportunities with their companies.
Courtney Dixon ’08 (Greenwich, Conn.) came to the career fair to meet with representatives of Kaplan Test Prep, Thompson Corporation, and Teach for America. A math major, Dixon was looking for opportunities to teach outside a school setting and was pleased with the connections she was able to make at the fair. Dixon said she was impressed by the large number of employers at the event.
“I think it’s great that [Career Services] brought this many people in to meet us,” she said.
Charlie “Chas” Snyder ’78 was one of 67 alumni at the event. He was looking for students interested in becoming civil engineers for Pennoni Associates, Inc.
“I think it’s a well-represented fair,” he said. “They have a good mix of employers and students.”
Pennoi regularly hires Lafayette students for both summer internships and permanent positions, and Snyder was confident he would find several promising candidates at this year’s fair.
Even students who are undecided about their career plans found the career fair to be a valuable networking experience. Trustee Scholar Greg Schwager ’07 (North Brunswick, N.J.), ahistory major, said that he had gotten some helpful advice about resumes and interviewing. Marquis Scholar Timothy Creelman ’07 (Philadelphia, Pa.), a mechanical engineering major, said he appreciates the opportunity to speak with employers in a setting that is more relaxed than a job interview.
MetLife Financial Services representative Debbie Karetz was recruiting students for sales positions with the company.
“MetLife is looking for a few good men and women,” she quipped. She had collected resumes from several interested students and said she hoped many of them would follow up with the company after the fair.
Karetz had a few tips for job seekers.
“It’s extremely important that the students dress well,” she said, noting that a tailored suit is a must for both men and women. She also said that she was very impressed by students who had their own business cards.
The next step for the students who attended the event is to follow-up with the contacts they made. Many of the employers will be back on campus in October to conduct interviews with students.
Career Services provides numerous programs focusing on student employment and graduate study. These include professional advising, career search tools, internships and externships, job fairs, workshops, mock interviews, and resume and cover letter writing services. The office is located in room 201 Hogg Hall. For more information on any of these events or programs, call ext. 5115.