Philippe Buteau and Belen Sassone/FIUSM Staff
University students will have the opportunity to meet nearly 150 employers looking to hire at the annual Career Fair.
Career Services will be hosting the fair on Tuesday, Sept. 29 and Wednesday, Sept. 30 from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. in the Graham Center Ballrooms at the Modesto A. Maidique Campus. Over 1,500 students and alumni are expected to participate, according to the Career Services website.
“All students, even if they’re not ready to graduate, should come and walk through the fair,” said Fernando Figueredo, Career Services executive director.
Employers vary from public, educational, non-profit organizations as well as military.
Participants include American Express Technology; General Electric; Walgreens; Robins Air Force Base and the Hispanic Scholarship Fund Institute, which offers internships, fellowships and scholarships opportunities with NASA.
Most of the employers that attend normally return because they have established FIU as a strategic-hire university, said Figueredo.
“It’s good for students to get to know some of the recruiters.”
Figueredo advises students to come prepared by having their resumes in hand while being professionally dressed. He said it is important to have an elevator pitch, which is a concise and persuasive sales message.
“First impressions are critical. Be enthusiastic and be energetic, so the employer gets a picture of who you are soon as they see you,” Figueredo said.
He also said students should determine what their strengths and weaknesses are to present to potential employers.
While on the spot hires rarely happen, employers have reserved the interview room in Career Services’ office – GC 230 – to further evaluate potential employees, according to Figueredo.
Good grades and work-related experience can also be brought up during interviews.
“Be ready to talk about both those things,” Figueredo said. “Why they should be someone the employer should consider.”
The National Security Agency was once looking to hire people for nine available positions and left having offered 17 jobs, according to Figueredo.
Career Services requires students to dress in business professional attire, to bring a printed copy of a current resume and their Panther ID. Book Bags are not allowed, and students who fail to meet the requirements will not be admitted into the event.
“I think the Career Fair is a great idea to help students like myself who never had a job, get an idea of what it’s actually like. I’m excited about dressing up and passing out my resume” said Michael Chobini, a freshman exploratory major.
In order to prepare for the Career Fair, students are advised to attend professional development workshops and take part in the Practice Interview Program. Students practice mock interviews and get critiqued on their skills to improve and impress employers.
The first day of the fair is dedicated to technical and education majors. Technical majors are those in the science, technology, engineering and math fields.
The second day of the fair is open to all majors and will include employers from The Home Depot, Target Corporation, Waffle House, Burger King Corporation, Trump National Doral and the CIA.
A complete list of employers attending the event can be found in the Career Services website.
Davy Alvarez is planning to attend to get connected with local employers and to see what job is out there.
“Graduation is coming up faster than I expected, so this is a great opportunity to get my foot in the door and see where I could potentially be working after I graduate,” said Alvarez, a senior management and finance double major.
Career Services holds two Career Fairs a year at MMC, so students who are unable to make it to this one will have another opportunity during the spring semester.
Students who attend the Biscayne Bay Campus will also have the opportunity to attend Career Fair at the main campus.
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