by Christian A. Lopez
Staff Writer
Students at the University of La Verne had the opportunity on Tuesday afternoon to gather information and expose themselves to more than 80 employers who attended this year’s annual Career Fair at Sneaky Park.
Some of the businesses and organizations that were present included the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office Bureau of Investigation, the United States Marine Corps Officer Selection Office, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, KIIS Radio 102.7 FM, Wells Fargo Financial, AFLAC and various school districts including Los Angeles, San Bernardino, Bonita and Claremont.
Each employer provided representatives who had eagerly informed students on all aspects of their corresponding careers. Fliers, pamphlets and brochures were also available to acquaint students with valuable facts about the benefits of choosing a particular job or field, while promotional giveaways enticed visitors to explore a variety of employer’s booths.
Students had the chance to fill out applications and turn in resumes for jobs they were interested in while visiting other employers.
Laura Venturini, interim director of the Career Development Center, said she sees this type of interaction between students and employers as the greatest advantage of attending the Career Fair.
“The greatest benefit for students is the ability to network with employers and get experience in talking to them, and to pick up employer literature, and then having the experience of handing out their resume,” said Venturi.
For junior Robert Paramo gathering information is the biggest gain in attending the Career Fair.
“I think the most beneficial thing is you get to see what the different companies are looking for, rather than thinking they just need a manager and the qualifications you need. So you can look at 12 to 15 companies in a matter of 30 minutes and get information that will help you see if this is something you would really like to do” he said.
Sophomore Johnya Center said she realized she qualified for many upscale jobs that she was unaware of after talking to several employers.
“Right now, I’m thinking of changing jobs because I’m a collector and I hate it. This is helpful because it helped me see a lot of jobs I have the requirements for, that I didn’t know I had the requirements for,” she said.
Along with informing students, employers also helped students narrow down their choices to what type of major they should choose to study while in school.
“Right now, I’m undecided, so I’m trying to find out what it is I should major in, and what I should be looking forward to,” said freshman Claudia Padilla. “It’s kind of providing a kind of guidance for me.”
Students were not the only ones who benefited from the Career Fair. Employers also had numerous opportunities to gather new recruits into their companies, agencies and organizations.
“Our goal by attending this fair as well as every other fair is basically to find qualified applicants who are going to be leaders in the Marine Corps,” said U.S. Marine Corps officer Felix Rodriguez.
The L.A. County District Attorney’s Office Bureau of Investigation has had so much success in recruitment, that in past Career Fairs they have been able to attract representatives from other companies and organizations in attendance besides just students.
“The recruiters that are here from different agencies, different law enforcement agencies, we also get them because a lot of them qualify,” said Tori Jordan an L.A. county district attorney’s office bureau of investigation representative.
Overall the interaction and communication between students and employers provided a professional atmosphere for all those who attended, making the Career Fair a success.
“I am so excited with this year’s student turnout. The students this year are very professional, they’re taking it serious, they’re asking all the right questions to employers, so I’ve been very, very impressed,” said Venturini.
Journalism operations manager at the University of La Verne. Production manager and business manager of the Campus Times.
