(MARSHALL) – Students at Texas State Technical College in Marshall took the opportunity to interact with employers Thursday morning during Industry Career Day.
More than 20 companies representing cyber security, telecommunications, electrical service, heavy machinery, chemical production and other fields gathered at TSTC’s South Building. Company representatives traveled from Alabama, Arkansas, Louisiana, Texas and the U.S. Virgin Islands to attend the event.
“It’s a great way for the students to make industry contacts and learn exactly what some of the companies in the area do,” said Hannah Luce, a Career Services associate at TSTC in Marshall. “It’s also great practice for the student, because at each table they visit, it’s like a mini-interview.”
Companies were using their own ways to develop communication connections with the more than 200 students in attendance who could become prospective employees.
Fort Worth-based Alcon specializes in treatments and innovative medicines for eye care and is a division of Switzerland-based Novartis. Ally Van Deuren, an Alcon campus recruiter in Fort Worth, said the company is seeking students for internships, cooperatives and part-time and full-time work in marketing, sales, finance, engineering, supply chain management and engineering. Industry Career Day was the first time the company has been represented at TSTC.
TSTC students were able to text the company and provide their names, fields of study, grade point averages and email addresses to get up-to-date employment postings.
“It’s pretty new,” Van Deuren said. “We started doing it last spring. It’s mutually beneficial to keep in contact with students and to have a contact email and phone. It is also good they have contact within Alcon and get updated information on jobs they might not see if they were searching.”
Representatives of AEP Southwestern Electric Power Co., also known as SWEPCO, in Shreveport, Louisiana, attended the event to direct students to its website to keep up with openings for station electricians, transportation dispatchers and other careers. AEP, based in Columbus, Ohio, is one of more than 200 coalition members of the Veteran Jobs Mission which seeks to place veterans into private-public sector skilled jobs nationwide.
“We familiarize ourselves with them in our process,” said Patty Woodham, a human relations consultant based in Shreveport. “We do all our staffing and hiring online. We give the students some insight into building a profile, having their resume up to date and checking the job listing.”
Carvana, a nationwide online used-vehicle seller headquartered in Phoenix, Arizona, has a location in Blue Mound in the Dallas-Fort Worth area. Representatives were seeking students studying in technical automotive programs and planned to keep in touch with them by telephone and email.
Carvana was represented at Industry Career Day for the first time.
“We’re eagerly seeking passionate students who fit the Carvana culture and closely identify with our company values, and from there, help them launch rewarding careers in the automotive industry,” said Amber Bartz, a company recruiter coordinator. “We’re also looking to create buzz among younger classes of students who also might be interested in pursuing a career with us in the future.”
For more information on TSTC, go to tstc.edu