Sealing the deal: 2016 Career Fair exploration day a success

Students, faculty, staff, recruiting employers, and corporate sponsors eagerly filled the F.G. Clark Activity Center this past Wednesday, September 21, 2016, in participation of the fall 2016 Career Exploration Day hosted by the Southern University Career Services Center.
Nearly 90 companies from around the country filled the activity center with approximately 400 students in attendance beginning at 10 AM until 3 PM.
Employers such as the Lafayette Police Department, WBRZ, Microsoft, ExxonMobil and the US Department of Agriculture Farm Service occupied booths, ready to communicate with students and allow them to pitch their potential value.
Jennifer Stewart, Director of Public and Government Affairs for Genesis Energy, a company seeking to recruit students, was enthusiastic about attending the career fair.
“We have a partnership with Southern University and we offer scholarships and internship opportunities for engineering and business majors,” said Stewart.
Stewart stated that it was the company’s second year attending the university’s career day.
According to the career fair itineray, the goal of the career exploration day was to inform Southern University students and alumni of the potential career opportunities offered to them and to increase the number of students gaining full-time, corporate employment and internships.
The director of the Office of Career Services, Tamara Montgomery, spoke of how the center is such a success because of help from sponsors and resources outside of the University through fundraisers, donations, and contributions from the Jaguar Nation.
“Southern University’s Career Services Center is really one of the premiere career services centers in the country. We’re known for how resourceful we are, sharing information, giving back to the students, how well organized we are and how well we prepare our students,” said Montgomery.
“The Career Services Center does not necessarily prepare the student for career day. We are here to prepare the student for life after college. That is most important,” she stated.
Student volunteer at the Office of Career Services from Hammond, Louisiana, Erin Banks, is a pre-nursing major and spoke of how important it was for students to attend the career day.
“Career Services, we have everything that you guys need to be able to get a job after you get your degree. It’s all up to you to take that chance and be willing to give yourself a better opportunity in the next few years,” stated Banks.
Tiffany Smith, a graduating senior from Shreveport majoring in criminal justice chose to attend the career fair in order to seek out potential employers.
“I was expecting to gain a lot of information from the companies, get a good experience, and interact with them,” said Smith.
Tyiesha Eames, a senior from Baton Rouge majoring in business management, stated that attending the career fair was a learning experience for her.
“I talked to some big corporations, Shell and Energy. They were very responsive in what they expected of me,” said Eames.
Other companies in attendance as potential employers were Ochsner Health System, International Business Machines Corporation, The United States Marine Corps, the New Orleans Police Department and the US Department of Justice Drug Enforcement Administration.