As graduation looms closer, Matt Smith is in a precarious position.
While many of his colleagues have already accepted job offers and summer internships from large companies, Smith, a graduate student at UCLA’s Anderson School of Management, is holding out for a smaller company focusing on renewable energy.
“These smaller companies don’t have their plans set up nine months in advance like the bigger ones,” Smith said. “They hire later in the year.”
It is largely for students like Smith that the Anderson School is holding the 2010 Recruiters’ Day & MBA Career Fair, today at the Anderson School’s Alumni Plaza.
The event caters in part to students like Smith who are seeking jobs from smaller firms, as well as to smaller companies that want to get their names out. Of the 44 companies sending representatives to the fair, many of them partake in “just-in-time recruiting,” said Rob Weiler, interim director at the Anderson School.
In light of the improving economy, there has been a 15 percent increase in companies present this year versus last year’s inaugural Career Fair.
While that does not necessarily translate to more jobs just yet, it is seen as a positive trend in the health of the economy, said Phil Han, recruitment director for the Anderson School.
“There are going to be more companies and thus more opportunities,” Weiler said. “We don’t have relevant statistics yet, but it’s certainly better. Anecdotally, the (recruiting) numbers are up, especially for the summer internships.”
The fair is designed to provide a low-stress environment in which students can mingle with potential employers, and this year the event will be combined with Recruiters’ Day for the first time.
During the recruiter portion of the day, different departments and representatives from the Anderson School will give presentations about current recruiting trends to corporate representatives. A student panel will also be on hand to answer questions about the trends that students are seeing.
Afterwards, the career fair will feature booths with company representatives that students can talk with or give resumes to. This year, it has been shortened to last only three hours, from 1 to 4 p.m. today.
“It’s a really good way to network,” said Anderson student Anshul Debuka. “Maybe, when I need a job next year, one of the people I meet will employ me.”
Although all Anderson students are invited, the fair is catered towards students who are not currently employed in other jobs or internships.
“Most of the companies are looking for entry-level recruits because fully employed students are going to go back to their jobs,” said Kate Van Dalsem, campus recruiting coordinator for the Anderson School.
The fair also provides a good opportunity for students to network for jobs without feeling like they are overstepping their boundaries, Weiler said.
“Sometimes people are hesitant to call and ask for a job,” he said. “The career fair is a lower-stress way for students to see and discuss job opportunities with employers.”
After the fair, acquiring a job is a quick process, Weiler said. Some companies decide to interview students on the spot, while others will collect resumes which they take notes on, and then call back their desired students.
“It can happen very fast,” he said. “Last year, the Disney Store hired one of our students. They met on the Friday of Career Fair, and two days later they had a job.”
Of the 200 students who attended last year’s fair, 19 received job offers afterwards Van Dalsem said. The fair was originally organized in order to help students land jobs in a struggling economy.
“This is a hard time, but our students are still getting jobs,” she said. “They are the example that even in a bad economy, if you work hard, you can get a job.”