Oct. 6 career expo preparation
Career Engagement is preparing students for the upcoming career expo, offering interview prep and resumé reviews, but these aren’t just once a year services. Students have access to these services all year whenever they need help.
On Oct. 6, Career Engagement will bring about 60 employees to campus for students to meet and engage with. Students are encouraged to attend and prepare for the upcoming expo.
“Our standard career engagement offering that we have, we do resumé reviews, we get people ready for internships and interviews especially and then also we have a big career fair coming up in early October that we’re really looking forward to,” Director of Career Engagement and Corporate Relations Ralpf Leal said.
Career Engagement also offers different workshops and presentations throughout the year.
Leal says the first thing to consider going into an interview is the point of the interview, getting to know the company and the company getting to know you.
“It’s really not unlike getting to know somebody for the very first time so you just want to talk and have a really nice conversation,” he said.
The biggest thing to do in preparation for an interview is practice, preferably with someone, Leal said.
“Practice with somebody because there’s all kinds of questions that get asked and [it’s] always good practicing those questions out loud for the first time with somebody else rather for the actual employer that you’re talking to,” he said.
It’s also recommended that students make sure to plan for the day of the expo, including speaking with professors if they need to be excused from class, and looking at the list of employers who will be in attendance.
“As far as just what to wear, I think you just [have] to be comfortable. You have to understand that you are making a first impression with an employer but at the end of the day the employer just wants to talk with students,” Leal said.
Even if you can only come between classes, students are still welcome and encouraged to attend the expo.
“Students should expect people from all over, various different companies and they should be ready to introduce themselves as well as possibly inquire about upcoming internships in the spring and summer,” Assistant Director of Career Engagement Tammy Alcala said.
Career Engagement is open until 7 p.m. Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday to offer services to students who may not have the opportunity to come in earlier in the day.
Alcala encourages freshmen to take advantage of the services they provide.
All services provided by Career Engagement are free to students.
“Use us, we work for you. Use the opportunities that are given. Again, we are centrally located across from Starbucks,” Acala said.
Joshua Macareno, a senior business management major, is a student worker in the career engagement office. He not only helps students but uses the resources himself.
“Some of the resources I’ve use personally is there’s this thing called Quincua so basically employers they use this ATS system, they usually don’t read your resumé they… use it to get keywords to make sure like you’re a great fit for the company and in the summer I actually used that and I actually landed an internship with Enterprise Holdings this summer,” Macareno said.
To schedule a meeting with the Career Engagement team contact them at hirejavelinas@tamuk.edu or call 361-593-2217.
Their office is located across the hall from Starbucks.
