By Ulices Samaniego and Taryn Cook

After two years of the event being held virtually due to COVID-19, this year’s career expo was held in person. The event occurred March 16 at M&T Field House of the Grumbacher Sport & Fitness Center (West Campus). The event started at 10 a.m.and went until 3 p.m., allowing for students to interact with the many employers who attended.

Smiles and conversations filled the field house as more than 90 employers and hundreds of students attended the event. Employers had tables set up where they greeted and spoke to students throughout the event.

Ally Scheetz from Penn State Health, who has been to three previous career fairs, said that she loves coming here to York because the school has a great nursing program and an amazing setup.

During an initial introduction Scheetz said she looks for ”professional address, a genuine interest and prepared questions” from student nursing recruits that stop by her table. She said that she believes strongly that career fairs are important because they let students “show initiative, passion and make a good personal connection.”

Newcomer Officer Warren from the Montgomery County (Md.) Police Department said it was his first time coming to a career fair. He said he thinks that having a career expo or fair is important because it can show a wide range of career opportunities. Students don’t just have to hear about the different paths from teachers but they can see them for themselves, he added.

When meeting new students, Warren said he wants them to be “happy, excited, willing to be here and willing to learn.” He said that he hopes to make this trip “a yearly thing.”

Most of the employers were from the surrounding area of central and northern Pennsylvania. The more than 90 different employers ranged from fields such as engineering and manufacturing to nursing and health care. Employers such as Utz, BAE Systems, Kinsley, Dutch Wonderland, The Cartoon Network Hotel and WebFX attended.

The yearly career expo allows for students to get an opportunity to talk to employers who are in need of potential full-time employees and interns. This gives students who are looking to get a job or internship a chance to start their network and potentially find an opportunity to advance their career.

Even those who weren’t looking for anything got to ask questions to future employers, see what they can do later on in their career, and start preparing now for what they can do later.

Ulices Samaniego is a senior majoring in Integrated Marketing Communications and Taryn Cook is a sophomore majoring in Hospitality Management.