Galipatia's First Career Fair

On Monday, September 11, 2017, the first-year engineering students in Galipatia walked from Lee Hall to Cassell Coliseum dressed in blazers and suits to experience the very first Expo Preview. Recruiters from companies such as General Electric, Altria, Microsoft, Pratt & Miller, NAVAIR, Accenture and many more were present to greet students.

Each student was assigned two companies to research and talk to. Through this process, they were able to network with recruiters and follow up with questions. Recruiters gave the students an overview of their companies. They also shared tips for improving resumes and preparing for internships and full-time positions in the future. Interacting with recruiters so early on in their college career will allow the students to nurture the relationships with every career fair that passes, thus enabling them to increase the chances of landing internships and jobs later on. This event also showcases to recruiters how talented and ambitious our first-year engineering students are, which further encourages them to keep recruiting at Virginia Tech.

In the past, Galipatia has held Mini-Expo style events, but with only a handful of companies. This event was expanded and made mandatory for all students to attend in an effort to give them a glimpse of the actual Engineering Expo in a more relaxed setting. The Engineering Expo can be a crowded and intimidating environment since over 300 companies and students from all engineering majors are present. Attending this Expo Preview event has equipped freshman students with knowledge and confidence that they can bring to fruition in the future career fairs that they will attend.