2016 Career and Graduate School Fair

2016 Career and Graduate School Fair at SUNY Polytechnic Institute.

More than 100 employers and graduate schools were all under one roof March 15 as students, alumni, and other job seekers gathered in the gym of the SUNY Poly Campus Center for the 2016 Career and Graduate School Fair.

“What a fantastic selection of choices for our students,” said Kathleen Alcott, Continuing and Professional Education Coordinator.

Local, state and national employers, as well as representatives from a variety of graduate programs were on hand to meet with students, alums, and members of the community to discuss current and upcoming job opportunities, internships and graduate degree programs.

“The 2016 event is the largest career fair in the past six years for SUNY Poly as well as one of the biggest within in the Mohawk Valley in the past three years,” said Sim Covington, Director of Career Planning at SUNY Poly.

While the hundreds of students and alumni get the chance to learn more about prospective employers, those employers receive the opportunity to meet students and alums that are interested in being a part of their team – be it full-time, part-time, or as part of an internship.

A myriad of employers were on hand, from accounting to healthcare, manufacturing to engineering, all giving students the opportunity to not only show off their analytic skills and academic prowess, but also the chance to use their honed abilities of interpersonal communication, social graces, leadership, and dress code. Those “soft skills” are something that Covington explains are crucial when it comes to interviewing and making it in the job market.

For those whose next leg of their journey may not be the workforce, there was numerous opportunities at the fair to explore the possibility of further education.

“What a terrific event,” said Maryrose Raab, Director of Graduate Admissions for SUNY Polytechnic Institute. “I have been recruiting students at SUNY Poly’s Career Fair for many years and this was by far the most successful that I can recall.  Employer attendance was outstanding, student traffic was heavy and steady, and the majority of them were dressed for success.”