Recruiters, recruiters everywhere, but not a job in sight was the complaint buzzing around the Glenn Miller Ballroom Wednesday and Thursday at Career Services’ Spring Career Fair.
Echoing national trends, many companies have had to slow down their recruiting and postpone hiring new employees.
“Some companies are not hiring at this point in time, but they are still here marketing themselves to hire down the road,” said George Hoey, assistant director of diversity at Career Services.
Students said though the Career Fair was intended to find jobs for prospective graduates, they noticed many companies weren’t necessarily looking for immediate employees.
“I’m not getting the vibe that a lot of places are hiring,” said Ashkon Hemmati, a senior English major, when asked about the nature of opportunities that companies were offering at fair.
Several students said they agreed hiring full-time employees was not the primary objective of this year’s fair.
“Because of the economy, a lot of people aren’t hiring,” said Lara Wahl, a senior accounting major.
Although the atmosphere at the fair may have been a little disappointing for certain students, that does not necessarily mean there is no hope for graduates.
“There are a few upstarts that want to hire,” Hemmati said.
Companies such as Bloomberg, First Bank and E. & J. Gallo Winery are still hiring recent college graduates for full-time positions.
But even companies that are hiring only offer certain positions in certain fields and the degree that was printed on every student’s nametag was an important factor.
“I feel that this fair is geared more for business and engineering majors,” said Jenna Taffet, a senior advertising major. “I was also under the impression that there would be more full-time positions, but it’s mostly internships.”
Other students said they agreed that their major was a critical component in their job search.
“There are lots of accounting jobs, but nothing for engineers,” said Alisha Cash, a senior accounting major.
Conversely, some students said they felt that a lot of companies were not only hiring, but very eager to find a place in their corporation for people with different educational backgrounds.
“Most companies are not even looking at your major and they will suggest something so that your experience can work in their benefit,” said Reid Brown, a senior chemical and biological engineering major.
Engineering companies had a strong presence at the fair, but it did seem as though only a few were hiring. Ecana, an oil and gas engineering company, hires only in the fall and MTech, a Denver-based mechanical technologies company, was only hiring two interns for the summer.
Still, every company at the fair was eager to talk to students and, if not offer them a job, then market their company and make their presence known among the newest pool of potential employees.
If the bad economy did impact the fair, it likely affected employer turnout more than job opportunities and, after all, even an internship is better than nothing.
“There are fewer employers this year than last,” said Beate Ruholl, career counselor with Career Services.
Contact CU Independent Staff Writer Allison Doyle at Allison.doyle@colorado.edu.
