Lincoln University students explore job opportunities at career fair | Jefferson City News-Tribune

More than 40 organizations flocked to Lincoln University on Thursday for its second annual career fair, as the school hosted local and university employers offering part-time roles

The Campus & Community Career Fair, hosted by Career Services, attracted roughly 100 students to the Scruggs University Center Ballroom looking for part-time jobs as the school year kicks off

Paula Clay, director of Career Services, said the event is designed for students to get connected with local employers, learn what kinds of roles are available and potentially secure a part-time job

“This was an opportunity to reach out to our local businesses, organizations, people that want to work with our students who are extremely talented and … also for the student to connect to be working within the community, too,” Clay said

Employers ranged from Lincoln departments — such as the Office of the Registrar and the Department of Agriculture and Environmental Sciences — to local businesses like Central Bank and the Boys & Girls Club of Jefferson City

Others included the Cole County Health Department, Mid America Bank, Jefferson City Medical Group, the Missouri Office of <a href="https://jiuniversity.com/us-student-visa-trump-administration-tightens-rules-cracking-down-on-internships-for-international-students/” title=”US student visa: Trump administration tightens rules, cracking down on internships for international students”>Administration, the Missouri Highway Patrol and the Missouri Department of Corrections

Sofia Bremer, a junior business major, was looking for part-time jobs that related to business. She particularly loves working with math, statistics and data, so she spoke with employers from Central Bank and Mid America Bank that had some part-time roles she plans to follow up with

Bremer, who is from Brazil and transferred to Lincoln from a community college in Kansas, said she was initially unsure if she could secure employment outside of university student jobs. But some of the employers she visited with Thursday said her international status wouldn’t be an issue

“Since I’m international, a lot of people tell me I cannot work outside of the campus unless it is related to my major. … So today is kind of my first interaction with, like, outside companies,” Bremer said

Other students, however, said they didn’t quite connect with the employers who were on site

For Vanessa Banks, a senior studying psychology, Thursday was her first time attending a career fair on campus. As a senior, she attended the event looking for internship opportunities, but anticipated a wider variety of organizations to have a presence at the fair

Banks said she didn’t see many employers that fit the kind of industry she’s looking to get into

“I was hoping more for more broader options,” she said. “It’s mostly just like banks and health care stuff. It’s not really that much for me for psychology majors. I didn’t really see anything for therapy or anything like that.”

But she added she was glad she attended, viewing it as a networking opportunity regardless of the job opportunities available. Banks did visit some of the university tables, where she signed up for some campus work study positions

The career fair was open to all students, meaning employers in attendance had to tailor their services to each person who approached their table

For Emily Mantle, a university and community events recruiter with University of Missouri Health Care, this meant guiding some students through different nursing opportunities or explaining how someone with a business degree could potentially work in a hospital system

“Some (students) are just getting started,” Mantle said. “Some don’t completely understand what it is that they can do in (a certain) field or what it is they want to do in that field. So we want to try to help educate.”

She liked sharing about MU Health’s nurse residency program, which allows graduate nursing students to connect with other recent nursing graduates, providing them a chance to meet other students going through similar experiences

Natasha Bruner and Kayla Melton of UMB Bank said they viewed Thursday as an opportunity to educate students in a different way. Bruner said UMB Bank isn’t currently hiring in Jefferson City, so her goal was to share financial literacy skills with students and to show how UMB Bank can play a role in their banking needs

As students approached Bruner and Melton, they asked them where they were from and explained how banking locally could help them while studying at Lincoln, especially when they might need cash fast

Then they had students spin a wheel with financial education topics to learn about, such as building credit, budgeting and fraud, among others

“This is one of my ways to give back to the community a little bit, to kind of reinvest in the students and educate them on their finances,” said Bruner, UMB Bank’s assistant vice president and branch manager

The career fair will continue to be hosted in early August, Clay said, in addition to other fall and spring career fairs

Source: www.newstribune.com