The University of Memphis hosted its annual fall career fair, the largest campus-wide, all-majors fair sponsored by the Career Services department, in the University Center last Wednesday, once again attracting positive turnout and responses from both organizations and students.
Various companies brought their best recruiters and representatives to the career fair searching for “tiger talent,” which comprised hundreds of UofM students looking to establish professional connections and networking opportunities. Companies ranged from XPO Logistics, one of the top ten global logistics corporations, to the Collierville Police Department.
Representatives from the corporations were eager to provide the students with information and advice throughout the event. Jennifer Burnham, a representative for XPO logistics, said working at the XPO supply house offers UofM graduates the opportunity to work for a company that provides substantial growth opportunities.
“We conduct business with organizations such as Disney, Packer and Nike, which gives graduates the chance to establish connections that they will have for later in their business careers,” Burnham said.
The flexibility of XPO is also an appealing factor, as many college graduates like to attend graduate school to earn master’s degrees.
“XPO grants recent college graduates the ability to gain experience through the XPO grad program,” said Bernard Miller, a manager at XPO Logistics.
As the career fair went on, students were more than happy to provide their resumes to the respective companies with their desire to impress very evident on Wednesday afternoon.
Junior health studies major, Khadijah Sheard said Scribe America really appealed to her and she could see herself working for them in the future.
“I would be recording and writing down a lot of information concerning the events that take place within the doctor’s room, but I feel that I could thrive in that environment,” Sheard said.
Alyssa Shankel, who serves as the manager of recruitment for Teach for America, which provides educational opportunities for kids in underachieving schools, said she was both impressed by the tiger talent on show and excited by the career fair turnout.
“Many of the applicants for internships and jobs were very professional and I was more than happy to tell them about what Teach for America has to offer,” Shankel said. “I can tell that many of the students have a passion for social justice and that is a value that simply cannot be taught.”
Many businesses throughout the fair made sure to point out to UofM students that a role could be found within their organization, regardless of what major they possessed. Alexander Johnson, a UofM junior, said he liked how the organizations provided opportunities to everyone regardless of their respective major.
“International Paper stood out to me the most because they can provide me the quickest pathway to success in my field,” Johnson said.
Organizations are seeking out UofM graduates and it is the job of career services staff to ensure that Tiger graduates are ready and able to thrive in their respective fields.
Jada Meeks, a career specialist for the STEM department at the UofM, said the career services department advertises the career fair to organizations based off suggestions from UofM students.
“If a student would like to have a particular company from the Memphis area to be in attendance, he or she can contact career services and we will see what we can do to accommodate them,” Meeks said.
