It’s job fair time again—that one day of the semester when dark business suits and shiny dress shoes replace shorts and flip flops. And while the quad in the College of Engineering is nearly deserted—the University Student Union is abuzz with hundreds of suit-clad students with stacks of resumes tucked under their arms.
Mechanical engineering senior Jesse Sanchez, who is graduating in December, plans to hand out a dozen resumes, including one to fast-growing medical device company Applied Medical. For each company he plans to meet with, he did some research. “You make time because it’s important,” he said.
Adam Jones, also a mechanical engineering senior, said he’s looking for opportunities at small companies where he’ll get to do a broad range of things.
About 70 employers participated in this year’s STEM Job & Internship Fair hosted by the CSULB Career Center. They included major employers in all engineering disciplines. And the larger the company, the longer the line. Although there are horror stories of 45-minute waits to speak with employers, even at the longest lines, students said the average wait was 10 or 15 minutes.
In the aerospace sector, exhibitors Boeing, Northrop Grumman, and Raytheon were joined by The Aerospace Corp., DCS Corp., Panasonic Avionics, and Teledyne Controls. Trent Severson, an aerospace engineering junior, and Stephen Cortez, an electrical engineering senior, were both waiting to speak with a Boeing recruiter.
Severson, who has already applied for one internship at the company, was interested in hearing about other opportunities. Cortez said he’s looking for anything from an internship to a full-time job.
Companies such as Granite Construction, Herzog Contracting, W.M. Lyles and Sukut Construction were on hand to meet civil engineering and construction engineering management majors.
Government agencies and utilities recruiting at the job fair included City of Los Angeles Department of Public Works, Los Angeles County Department of Public Works, the Riverside County Flood Control and Water Conservation District, Southern California Gas Co., and Southern California Edison.