Career Services’ primary goal is to provide students resources to access different internship and job opportunities, but students are not taking notice.
On Feb. 7, Ohio Wesleyan participated in the Ohio Foundation of Independent Colleges’ (OFIC) Career Fest.
Leslie Melton, Director of Career Services, said while 60 students signed up to attend the fair, only about 20 showed up, including nine unregistered students and alumni.
“One of the reasons we do that (sign up) is so that some of the smaller, independent colleges can come together and offer employers a large group of students,” she said.
Melton said OFIC college invites employers to the fair to meet students and continuously work to spread the word about the fair to possible new employers.
Melton said she was not sure why the attendance to the fair was so low, considering the dwindling attendance did not have anything to do with weather and there was transportation available for students.
“We’ve actually had more attendance in the years where there’s been a lot of snow,” she said.
Melton said she believes students get busy and forget about the fair.
Other universities have also had attendance problems, but this year’s low attendance was a new record.
The career fair is just one service Career Services offers, and Melton said there are other opportunities for students throughout the semester.
“I think it is important that students are productive during the summer, so that it helps their chances with future endeavors,” she said. “Additional experience is always helpful.”
Melton said she hopes students come to fairs that Career Services offer to network with different companies.
Senior Leah Hively and sophomore Ben Thieman both attended Career Fest.
“Along with learning about other companies, Career Fest gave those companies the opportunity to get to know me on a personal level,” he said.
Thieman also said he is in contact with some companies and is looking for an opportunity with them.
“Some really good companies were represented, but (there were) also some companies that I did not think would have good positions for students with a degree from a private college like OWU,” Hively said.
Hively said she was expecting a larger fair with more companies with different ranges, but she said she received good advice that will help her in continuing to look for jobs.