Career fair targets engineering, science, technology students
Although fewer students than expected attended this year’s Engineering, Science and Technology Career Fair, Alicia Aroche, director of the fair, described it as a success. More than 350 students turned out to meet with representatives from 14 companies including Dominion Virginia Power and Philip Morris U.
Although fewer students than expected attended this year’s Engineering, Science and Technology Career Fair, Alicia Aroche, director of the fair, described it as a success. More than 350 students turned out to meet with representatives from 14 companies including Dominion Virginia Power and Philip Morris U.S.A.
“We thought we’d have more students because the chance to talk to recruiters is very valuable,” said Aroche, also the assistant director of Virginia Commonwealth University’s Career Center. “But because it was so targeted we knew not to expect that big a turnout.”
Nonetheless, Aroche said she was impressed with the level of preparation some students showed when they arrived for the event.
“They looked very professional,” she said. “I couldn’t tell if some of them were students or recruiters.”
The students made an impact on some of the recruiters, too. Jerome Fleenor, a staffing specialist for Philip Morris, interviewed three students.
“They were all very smart and intellectual,” he said. “They were very bright.”
Fleenor said his managers were also impressed with the candidates’ abilities to handle their questions and their answers.
Christina Rodi, whom Fleenor interviewed, said the career fair surpassed her expectations. Rodi, a freshman majoring in mechanical engineering, said she intended to only hand out her resume, but was surprised when offered an on-the-spot interview by the Philip Morris representative.
“This was my first career fair ever,” she said. “I’ve never done an interview before so it was interesting. I’ve never actually done a one-on-one (interview) before to seek a job.”
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Philip Morris U.S.A. applicant evaluation criteria Job Match Interest: in job, interest in Philip Morris, appropriate education and experience, plus availability for placement. Impact: Verbal skills, assertiveness, commands attention, self-confidence, persuasive and sells ideas, enthusiastic, high energy, appropriate grooming and dress. Problem-Solving: Organized, logical, plans, considers variety of solutions, decisive, quality and sophisticated answers and solutions, plus sound objectives. Social Skills: Friendly, understands others, tactful, gets along with others, listens and displays emotions appropriately. MotivationAccomplished, independent, goal-oriented, initiative, sense of urgency and Ambitious. |
Rodi said she answered situational questions including one that asked what a person would do to motivate a co-worker who was lagging behind and not doing his work. Fleenor also asked her what she liked and didn’t like about herself, which Rodi said were tough questions.
“They ask you what you like about yourself, and I said that I was a leader. What I don’t like about myself is maybe I should listen more,” Rodi said. “I don’t think that was a good answer. But I got the job, though, so maybe it was.”
Fleenor and another Philip Morris U.S.A. staffing specialist, Teresa Toombs, help the managers screen candidates for the company’s co-op and internship positions. Together they interviewed five students and distributed 150 guidelines for internship positions with their company.
Key qualities they look for in a candidate, Toombs said, are presence, including a positive appearance and a personable attitude as well as above-average grades.
“We also look for participation in outside organizations because this company is involved in a lot of community service,” she said.
In all, the Philip Morris U.S.A. representative said the students excelled in presence and grade-point averages but lacked in community service. Such service, she said, tends to show how well-rounded a candidate is.
“But the main emphasis is on GPA,” Toombs said, suggesting that students visit the University Career Center to prepare for career fairs and to visit Web sites to study a company’s background before interviewing with its representative.
