by Sam Hauff

Presbyterian College’s Office of Career and Professional Development held its 2023 Career and Graduate School Fair in Springs Gymnasium this past week.

The fair included more than  40 employers and multiple graduate school programs for students to engage and network. Students were able to apply for both summer internships and full-time employment opportunities, as well as explore other post-graduate opportunities.

Pop-up booths tightly lined the walls of the gymnasium, students were dressed in their best professional attire, and chatter and firm handshakes could be heard and seen across the room.

“It was one place, for two hours, for students to just connect to hundreds of people,” said Kim Lane, director of career and professional development. “It gives students a chance to meet face to face and ask questions that they might not have thought about beforehand.”

More than a hundred students turned out for the event, with around 75 percent of the attendees being current seniors, 25 percent juniors, and the remainder split across the freshman and sophomore student populations.

Lane said the biggest importance of holding a career fair is “building social capital.”

“People underestimate this– 80 percent of jobs come through networking in some way, shape, or form,” she said. “The biggest plus of having this career fair was that we gave all of the student body a big networking Christmas gift.”

The feedback from recruiters was overwhelmingly positive. Lynn Downie, associate director of career and professional development, shared how pleased employers were with the fair turnout. She said a recruiter praised all PC students for their professionalism – not just seniors.

“And that, to me, was so encouraging,” said Downie.

PC alumnus Will Williamson ’11 speaks to students about career opportunities at NAI Earl Furman.

A notable event highlight was having 14 alumni return to campus to recruit current PC students for their employers. This allowed both current and former students to forge those important connections in creating a graduation-to-career pipeline from PC to high-paying, high-quality employers.

“That’s exciting because alumni are getting to their feet in their organizations and saying to their employers, ‘Hey, we should come to my alma mater and find some candidates,’” Lane said.

Another featured piece of this year’s career fair was the introduction of the LinkedIn photo booth, where students were able to get free professional headshots for their LinkedIn profile. More than half of the attending students took advantage of this opportunity, expanding their online professional presence.

The Career and Professional Development department noted their collaboration with multiple other departments on campus. The other contributors who made this fair possible were Presby First+, Student Involvement, Athletics, Admissions, and CPD Russell Program intern, Dagne Apsite.

The Career and Professional Development Department has a  post-fair message to students.

“Follow up,” said Lane. “Don’t say, ‘Oh, it’s done.’ Really follow up with what you learned, how it is going to advance your career plans right now and reach out to those employers. There are so many people that are hiring right now, for internships and careers, this is the prime time to take action, not waiting to get your diploma in May.”

Both Lane and Downie express the importance of growing a connection with the Career and Professional Development Department.

“We really want students to see the value of us as more than just resume critiquers, we are building relationships with employers and organizations,” said Lane.

The CPD department offers a variety of services far beyond critiquing students’ resumes. They also offer interview preparation sessions, one-on-one career and graduate school counseling, internship and job search assistance, graduate school preparation, and free professional attire for students through Tartan Threads.

The department has curated a four-year action plan that all students are encouraged to follow. While also engaging in dialogue and a relationship with the CPD department and utilizing these important, free resources to advance their professional and post-graduate aspirations.

Alumni and their organizations:

• AmeriCorps SC (unable to attend) – Kennedy Wright ‘23
• Columbia Theological Seminary – Sarah Kate Bumgardner ‘12
• Fastenal Company – Nicole Sessoms ‘20, Christen Cody ‘20
• Herc Rentals Corporation – Matt Henderson, Ethan Lifchez, and Chapman Drake ‘22
• Infinity Marketing Solutions, Inc. – Jared Smiling ‘23
• NAI Earle Furman – Will Williamson ‘21
• Priority1 – Jackson Smith ‘13
• Richland School District One – Selina Latimore ‘94
• Robert Half – Hillary Emmanuel ‘14
• ScanSource, Inc. – Christina Julien ‘22
• State Farm Insurance (unable to attend) – Kaleb Griffin, Adam Peterson ‘13

Invited Organizations

• AmeriCorps SC (unable to attend)
• Appalachian State University
• BMW Manufacturing Co.
• Charleston Southern University
• Cintas Corporation
• City of Aiken
• Columbia Theological Seminary
• Converse University (unable to attend)
• East Tennessee State University
• Enterprise Holdings
• Fastenal Company
• Federal Bureau of Prisons
• Founders Federal Credit Union
• Greenwood School District 50
• Herc Rentals Corporation
• High Point University
• Infinity Marketing Solutions, Inc.
• Lander University
• Liberty Tax
• Lonza
• Milliken & Company
• NAI Earle Furman
• Nephron Pharmaceuticals Corp
• PC Grad Programs
• Priority1
• Richland School District One
• Robert Half
• Roper Staffing
• SC Department of Revenue
• SC Dept of Health and Env Control (DHEC)
• SC Law Enforcement Div. (SLED)
• ScanSource, Inc.
• Self-Regional Healthcare
• Southern Teachers Agency
• State Farm Insurance (unable to attend)
• Swamp Rabbits (ECHL)
• The Ritedose Corporation
• Union Presbyterian Seminary (unable to attend)
• Unum
• Waffle House, Inc.
• Winthrop University
• World Finance