Career fairs coming to GCU in November and beyond

By Mark Heller
GCU News Bureau

There is no substitute for real-world experience, and Grand Canyon University students have several opportunities to hand out (and lengthen) resumés and improve interview skills during the next month.

Following the recent Counseling and Practicum Fair in partnership with the College of Humanities and Social Sciences, the Career Impact Center is collaborating with the College of Science, Engineering and Technology to offer another event for GCU students.

The IT Career Consortium is scheduled for 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Wednesday, Nov. 2, outside Building 57 and will feature companies from the information technology and computer science industries. Students will be able to discuss both job and internship opportunities with the recruiters at the event.

GCU Career Impact Center Executive Director Jacqueline Smith advises students to take advantage of the opportunity to interact with employers.

“Dress professionally, bring resumés, have confidence and be well-spoken,” she said. “You’ll be one step closer toward landing a job.

“That’s what it’s all about: networking, networking and more networking.”

Smith called next week’s career fair a “first step” in creating a pipeline between GCU students/graduates and Valley companies looking to hire for computer, technology, math and science positions.

“There are many positions within the CSET and STEM fields that haven’t been created yet,” Smith said. “Our students are prepared for these roles because they are creative, passionate, inquisitive, able to think critically and make a great first impression.”

She encouraged other GCU colleges to contact the Career Impact Center to help set up career fairs and promote job/internship opportunities. She also encouraged students to seek out the Career Impact Center for job and internship resources, including many available on-campus positions, where a “safe to fail” environment is fostered vs. the often harsh real world.

“We provide resumé reviews and mock interviews, but (job fairs) are more impactful,” Smith said. “We don’t want to wait until students are ready to graduate before introducing them to employers. We want those relationships and great resources available to anyone who’s motivated, professional and ambitious.”

The Career Impact Center has quite a few events lined up for the remainder of the semester and academic year, including:

Individual companies also will be on campus throughout November looking to hire full-time, part-time and internship positions, including:

For more information about events and job fairs, refer to the Career Impact Center website.

Mark Heller can be reached at (602) 639-7516 or [email protected]