Samford University’s Career Development Center will host its 2021 spring career fair through a virtual platform, Thursday, Feb. 25, 10 a.m. – 2 p.m. The event, open to current students and Samford alumni, will showcase employers seeking to fill full-time and part-time jobs, as well as internships.
“This virtual event will be an excellent opportunity for students and alumni to connect with employers as they seek internships, full-time employment, a new job or a career change,” said Dora Ditchfield, director of Samford’s Career Development Center. “For underclassmen, this event will provide an opportunity to begin exploring options for the future.”
The platform, Career Fair Plus, includes a mobile app and web version to provide participants multiple ways to connect. Each employer will have their own virtual booth which has both group and individual video chat capabilities. Once registered, participants will be able to log on to view a list of participating employers, filter employers by industry and schedule appointments ahead of time. The mobile app is very user friendly and allows participants to mark employers and jobs as their favorites, and also provides easy access to the schedule they have arranged for themselves.
Because the event is virtual this year, the hours will be longer than past events. This will allow participants plenty of time to block off windows in their schedules for professional conversations, either scheduled for a specific time through the system in advance, or through the drop-in meetings function in Career Fair Plus.
During the month of February leading up to the event, the Career Development Center will email students once a week to help them prepare for the event, navigate the technology, and more. In addition, the CDC staff will host an information table on campus to answer questions about the upcoming career fair on the following dates, 11:30 a.m. – 1:30 p.m.:
- February 15, University Center
- February 16, Cooney Hall
- February 17, College of Health Sciences Lobby
- February 18, Ben Brown Plaza or the University Center
“In these current times, it’s more important than ever for students to start exploring options for internships and careers, and they should be open-minded and meet with as many organizations as possible,” Ditchfield said.
Ditchfield added that preparation is key for the students, including researching the participating companies in advance and considering the questions they want to ask the representatives during the event.
“We want Samford alumni to understand that this event is also for them. Regardless of where they currently call home, we encourage them to participate and are happy to assist them in preparing for the event.”
Interested participants can learn more and register for the career fair here.