Engineering Career Fair Connects Students to Potential Employers

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The College of Agriculture, Engineering and Science recently hosted a Career Fair on the Howard College campus to give Engineering students an opportunity to interact with representatives from various engineering companies.

Student Union Hall was filled with excitement, as hundreds of students engaged with industry representatives from numerous companies such as Standard Bank, 2 Cana, Citrus Academy, Boston Consulting Group, Marsh, Samsung and the eThekwini Municipality.

Discussions involved studies being undertaken by students and what job opportunities were available. Representatives spent time describing their businesses, their bursaries and graduate programmes, as well as answering questions and exchanging contact details.

The Career Fair is among the many initiatives the College’s Career Development Office offers to students and other support service initiatives include CV writing, interview and presentation skills and career development sessions on the Howard College, Westville and Pietermaritzburg campuses.

When asked about why they attended the Career Fair, Chemical Engineering Graduate, Mr Sandile Mtolo said, ‘I attended the Engineering career fair as a Chemical Engineering graduate who is seeking opportunities from relevant different industries. I felt like I will be exposed to different companies and get to network with some of the companies’ representatives.’

‘I encourage UKZN and the College’s Career Development Office to have this event twice a year, and I advise students to attend as they did this time. It was a very good experience as one got advice and more insight about the chosen career. Furthermore, they gave a brief explanation on what to expect from the working environment that differs from the campus environment and also, how to apply yourself when you get there,’ explains Mtolo.

Ms Alison Stephanus from Standard Bank said that she enjoyed good interaction with students - they asked many questions about their graduate programme and showed interest in their Young Professional Offering. She also found that the students were very enthusiastic.

‘This is the first time myself and my team attended and thought that it is a great platform that UKZN offers to their students. Standard Bank has a great partnership with UKZN on a whole and we would appreciate more events of this nature to promote our Brand,’ said Stephanus.

Words and photographs: Christian Ishimwe