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Students and recruiters gather in the Lee Arena for the spring career fair. Students shared resumes and discussed internships and career paths throughout the event.
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Melanie Bermudez (left), training and development coordinator and Katie Tobin (right), human resources coordinator, represent Envista at the Washburn Career fair. Envista had many Washburn students working with them and offered flexible schedules to fit students’ availability.
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Students explore different career paths and meet employers at Washburn’s Career fair. Washburn’s departmental organizations also participated in the event.
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Ember Hope clinical services provides reintegration, adoption and kinship services. Nikki Hays (left), talent recruiter and Kimberly Miller (right), human resources- talent recruiter, represented Ember Hope.
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Marah Carney, senior forensic scientist, represents the Johnson County Sheriff’s Office at the Washburn career fair. She explained the different internship opportunities available to local and international students.
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Topeka Police Department and officers use a robotic dog to enter buildings and search for people. It allowed officers to see what’s inside through a camera attached to its front which sent live feedback to the officers panel.
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Hannah Hanford, Sen. Roger Marshall, represents the United States Senate from Washington, D.C. She explained the different job opportunities and internships to the students.
The Spring Career Fair was held on Feb.18 from 10a.m.-2 p.m. at Washburn Lee Arena. Around 130 registered organizations took part in the event. The event is held during fall and spring semesters. Students use the Handshake platform to connect with organizations and search for internship and job opportunities at the career fair.
The organizations represented many different industries and career paths. Some of which are graduate programs that are recruiting students for their programs.
“Washburn’s Career fair is a great opportunity for you [students] to experience any one of those different pathways essentially and regardless of which one of those paths our students are on,” said James Barraclough, director of the career engagement office. “It’s a fantastic opportunity to practice networking right and develop those skills that you’re going to need when you get closer to graduation, so you can engage with employers.”
Barraclough also talked about the opportunities available at the event about experiential learning, internships and connections and why students should take advantage of them.
“Envista Credit Union is a financial institution, so we have a lot of positions open but the main one that we focus on is entry level positions,” said Melanie Bermudez, training and development coordinator at Envista. “We are looking for someone that is really good with people, friendly with our members and is very good at just being friendly. So, we want someone that’s personable, has integrity, because you do work with members’ money. We need to be able to trust you in the credit union as well.”
Bermudez explained that Envista is located in Topeka, Lawrence and Hutchinson and currently has many Washburn students working with them. She also said they are flexible with school schedules and are willing to adjust work hours to fit students’ availability.
“I came here to explore what kind of job openings or internships there are in my career field, get the background of different fields around and see job opportunities, not only in Kansas but also outside of Kansas,” said Jessica Solis, junior health service administration major. “I highly recommend for Washburn students to come explore, maybe they open up to any other job positions or internships. Even if they’re interested in something else irrelevant from their career, they can still see what opportunities are there.”
Solis also shared that finding a job can be tough these days, especially with how competitive the workforce is.
The career fair brought together students and employers in one space to explore opportunities, ask questions and build connections. With organizations from different industries and even graduate programs in attendance, the event provided information about career paths, internships and entry level positions. The next career fair will take place in the around mid September with different organizations expected to participate.
Edited by Arohi Rai and Bidhya Sapkota
