Tie and business suit-clad students with resumes in hand descended on the University's Minority Career Day yesterday.
The event attracted approximately 1,000 students from 30 colleges and universities throughout the Commonwealth and the District of Columbia, including the College of William & Mary and American University. The event was hosted at the Omni Hotel on the Downtown Mall.
Celebrating its 20th anniversary, the career fair featured 125 companies, including Fortune 500 corporations, 32 government agencies and 28 non-profit groups. The fair boasted 112 companies last year, marking a substantial increase in corporate participation.
"It's sort of like one stop shopping for the recruiters," because of the sheer volume of students, said Haley Gyory, University Career Services events coordinator.
Originally conceived as an opportunity to match companies with minority students, the event always has been and continues to be open to all students.
"Our goal is to bring diverse opportunities to a diverse group," said Jen Hoffman, University Career Services associate director of employer services.
It is important for the University, as the flagship institution of the state, to host such events and make them open to students attending other state schools, Hoffman and Gyory agreed.
"A lot of these companies are not accessible to other [smaller] schools here," Hoffman said.
James Daniels, director of human resources for Danbury Public Schools in Connecticut, said he has returned each of the past three years because of the quality of the University's teaching program.
"Where the fish are biting, we go fishing," Daniels said. "And, the fish are biting here. We saw so many great candidates today."
Other company and agency representatives echoed Daniels' admiration for the quality of job-seekers and the diversity of students in attendance.
"We come because the Peace Corps has been seen as the haven of the white middle class," Peace Corps Regional Recruiter Matthew Gallagher said.
Gallagher explained the government agency wanted to recruit a more diverse base of volunteers to show a true representation of America to the world.
Like Dominion Power whose headquarters is in Richmond, other recruiters said they also attended because of the regional nature of the fair.
"We're been extremely pleased with the number and quality of candidates," said Judy Brooks, a recruiter for Dominion Power.
Don Kocher, an engineer with Anheuser-Busch, said Budweiser was drawn to the event to recruit students for technical internships at their Williamsburg brewery.
Students in attendance said they were impressed with the organization of the fair and the multitude of opportunities made available.
"It's a wonderful experience," third-year College student Jobila Williams said. "It's a great networking opportunity. You'd be surprised it's not just for business majors. It's for all grades and students of all years."
Third-year College student Eric Leamy, who said he came without any idea of specific companies with which he wanted to speak, said he left excited about a possible internship with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms.
"I really hope I get it," Leamy said.
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