This year’s engineering and general career fairs were planned in part by Career Services, the new name of what was formerly the Career Center, which is transitioning into a division of The University of Akron’s new EXL center.

A previous Buchtelite article misstated that the EXL center was replacing the Career Center. This is not true.

“The space that was called the ‘Career Center’ is now going to be known as ‘Career/EXL,’ and in addition to the vast array of opportunities made available by Career Services, there will also be a multi-mentoring lab open to every student…set to open in fall 2016,” Ian Schwarber, EXL’s resource director, recently said.

Career Services still exists, it is just in a transitionary period. 

EXL Founding Director Jeff Hoffman praised Career Services’ efforts in planning this week’s fairs: “The excellence that shows when you visit these Career Fairs is… a very clear example of what kind of experience you can expect when going to [Career Services] for assistance.  They are a highly professional, extraordinarily competent team.”

The University holds an engineering career fair and a general career fair each semester.  This semester’s fair was also planned by the College of Business Administration and the College of Engineering Co-Op and Placement Office.

Three-hundred companies participated in the fairs, which attracted more than 1,600 students over two days. Goodyear, Marathon, government agencies, and different military branches were a few of the companies represented.

Laura Carey, director of Career Services, was pleased with the planning and execution of this semester’s fairs.  

“Both fairs were a great success. Employers raved about their overall experience including how well-prepared the students were, the well-organized events, and about how enjoyable their experiences are when they come to UA for career fairs,” Carey said.  

Carey added that students were pleased with a new color-coded balloon system that allowed them to determine if companies were hiring interns or full-time employees.

In the wake of this week’s Career Fairs, Career Services is preparing for even more fairs and events in the coming months.