Business, LAS, Engineering career fair taking place Tuesday

Rather than waiting for a job offer to appear in the mail, business students are encouraged to get out there and make connections with potential employers.

The Colleges of Business, Liberal Arts and Sciences and Engineering career fair takes place from noon to 6 p.m. Tuesday in Hilton Coliseum.

All business students are encouraged to attend, even if they currently have an internship set up.

“We really want them to get the message that you need to go over there to connect with employers,” said Tammy Stegman, career coordinator of business career services. “This is your time to build relationships.”

Megan Groshek, graduate assistant in educational leadership and policy studies, and career coordinator of business career services, said the career fair is one of the few times students will actually be approached by employers.

“Employers are coming to them because they want to connect with them, they want to connect with Iowa State students, and I think that’s a really important message to get out,” Groshek said.

With the economy struggling, students may think employers are not hiring, but this is not the case.

Stegman said research and statistics show that employers are beginning to hire college graduates again.

“It’s our job to properly inform them so that they know, yes, they are hiring and there are jobs out there, but they have to assertive,” Stegman said. “They have to go out and look for them; they can’t just expect something to just be delivered in their mailbox with their dream job after they graduate.”

Eric Davis, account executive of Des Moines Truck Brokers, Inc., said representatives from the company have not been to Iowa State’s career fair in a long time. They are attending this year in the hopes of improving their business.

“We’re a small company with only nine employees,” Davis said. “We’re looking to grow and need someone to help us grow.”

Davis said the company is looking for graduating students to cover the position of carrier coordinator. There is also a possibility of the company hiring an intern who would be an assistant to the career coordinator, Davis said.

Signs of the economic rebuilding may also be noted by companies attending the career fair for the first time.

Aaron’s Sales and Lease Ownership, Inc., is one of those companies.

Kyle Gall, general manager of Aaron’s in Ames, said the company started out with four businesses 10 years ago and hopes to have 100 stores within the next 10 years.

He said the company is wanting to hire graduating seniors who are motivated and willing to help the company reach its goal.

“Obviously, Iowa State is a huge deal in the state of Iowa, and there’s a bunch of really great students that have come out of that school,” Gall said. “Any way we can get our hands on some great personalities and great people for the company, we really want to try to do that.”

Something different about this year’s career fair is that it will bring together the colleges of Business, Liberal Arts and Sciences, and Engineering.

This decision was made to make it more beneficial to both attending employers and students.

“So, really, what that does is makes it a great event for students, because Hilton Coliseum will be full, there will be companies there that typically come for engineering career fairs, but they also recruit business students and liberal arts and science students, so now they’ll all be in one place,” Stegman said.

Tips for success at the career fair:

- Dress professionally and conservatively.

- Be familiar with the company you are approaching.

- Know what skills you can bring to the company.

- Be able to tell communicate articulately.

- Know what is on your resume.

(tips suggested by Tammy Stegman, career coordinator of business career services, and Megan Groshek, graduate assistant in educational leadership and policy studies and career coordinator of business career services)