Career Expo 2012 gives students a head start in job market connections
“Make a Life–Make a Living–Make a Difference” was the theme as CALS Career Expo 2012 welcomed more than 1,000 students to its annual career fair Sept. 27 at N.C. State University. Hosted by the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences’ Career Services, this year’s expo was more expansive than ever, with 80 booths of participating companies and potential employers filling the Talley Student Center Ballroom, as well as both its North Gallery and South Gallery and adjacent lobby/reception area.
Alumni job seekers were also invited to attend and join students as they visited the various booths, spoke with company representatives and made valuable connections, while sharing resumes, collecting business cards for future contacts and learning about employment opportunities and internships.
The list of participating companies literally ranged from A to Z: from Ag.Careers.com to Zoetis (Pfizer Animal Health).
Students lined up to wait their turns to shake hands, offer a resume and get acquainted with reps from such potential employers as AgCarolina Financial, BASF, Black Gold Farms, Bartlett Expert Tree Co., Charles River Discovery Research Services, Conservators’ Center Inc., Carolina Farm Credit, DuPont Pioneer, Helena Chemical, House of Raeford, John Deere Landscapes, LabCorp, Murphy-Brown LLC, the North Carolina Department of Agriculture & Consumer Services, N.C. Museum of Natural Sciences, Pike Nurseries, Prestage Farms Inc., Quintiles, Syngenta, Teach for America, Walt Disney World and Wayne Farms LLC.
(Go to the Career Expo web site, for a complete list of participating companies.)
“This is the week for CALS students to make career progress,” said Marcy Bullock, director of CALS Career Services, who encouraged students to take time to research the companies prior to attending the event. “The participants all want to meet the students to talk about internships, career information and jobs.”
Bullock’s office also provided a map to guide attendees to the various booths, including indications of companies offering internships, a list of tips for talking with exhibitors and an opportunity to have a free professional headshot photo taken at a booth in the lobby.
The Career Expo was kicked off in Talley Center’s Stewart Theatre with the keynote address “Making a Difference,” delivered by Anita Brown-Graham, director of N.C. State’s Institute for Emerging Issues.
Just as the Emerging Issues Forum aims to improve the well-being of North Carolina, Brown-Graham told the students in the audience, “working together we can identify the most promising opportunities for change and progress.”
Offering illustrative stories from her experiences, Brown-Graham told the group, “Today, as students, you have the opportunity to walk into a room and ask the right questions; … to know if you decide to engage you can lead people to a better place; and … to know you can leave the thumbprint of a legacy that is better than that left to you.”
With that inspiration, the students were off to explore the opportunities awaiting them at the Career Expo. — Terri Leith
More scenes (below) from CALS Career Expo:
