ESS associate vice presidents Shuying Yuan and Henry Su are supported by about 90 engineering students who volunteered to help out with this year's ESS Engineering Career Fair. More than 70 companies are represented at the two-day event.
Edmonton-With more than 70 companies on hand, including construction giants like Stantec and PCL and tech firms like Microsoft and Garmin, the Engineering Career Fair is a hive of excitement and activity.
Running Jan. 7 and 8, the annual Engineering Students' Society career fair brings engineering students and companies together as students look for jobs and the companies seek out young employees.
"We just really want to connect students and employers," said Henry Su, a second-year chemical engineering student who led the organizing team with fourth-year engineering student Shuying Yuan.
Yuan, who is in the engineering co-op program, already has a good deal of experience in searching for and landing jobs-she has worked on paid engineering co-op placements with TECK Resources and ConocoPhilips. She wanted to take on a leadership role in planning the career fair because to improve on what was already a highly successful event.
"I've worked at the career fair before as a volunteer and saw areas that could be improved," she said.
Yuan added that every one of the 44 booths has been booked by more than 70 companies attending.
"I'm really glad we were able to fill all the spots this year, with the price of oil dropping. We're an energy-based province but we were still able to fill all of the booths-that's good news for students."
Electrical engineering student Ryan Huynh says that volunteering for the career fair gives students more chances to meet with prospective employers, and gives them volunteer experience which they can add to their resumes.
"It is definitely a valuable experience," said Huynh, adding that some employers have recognized him from previous years and have greeted him while setting up their booths.
"Volunteering is a good way to spend more time with employers," he said.
Ultimately, it's all about students working together to help one another find their way into the engineering profession.
"We're all working together as a team, along with the Engineering Employment Centre and the Co-op to put students and employers together," said Su. "I'm finding this is really personally rewarding. I'm trying to put the event first and I think that by doing that, my personal goals will somehow come through."