After networking at last year’s Internship and Job Fair, senior Taylor Self landed an internship with Tickets for Kids Charities. 

Junior global cultural studies major Carlene Morgan got her first internship at the fair with the American Red Cross.  

And senior Eric Stonebraker volunteered and interned with the Pittsburgh Penguins Foundation, Pittsburgh Power and the Pittsburgh Riverhounds. 

These students are among the 200-300 people that attended the career fair last year and connected with a variety of employers, according to Career Development Coordinator of Employer Relations Angela Scaramucci. 

This year, over 100 employers are expected to be in attendance at the Internship and Job Fair on Tuesday, Sept. 30 in the Student and Convocation Center from 12 p.m. to 3 p.m. Among the returning employers are the City of Pittsburgh, Highmark Stadium and Allegheny County. Some new employers planning to attend will include Attack Theatre, Early Music America and Rite Aid. 

 “It’s all industry employers that are looking to hire our students and alumni for various opportunities…internships, part-time jobs [and] full-time jobs,” Scaramucci, who organizes the fair every fall, said Sept. 18 in Lawrence Hall. “It’s a great event for students and alumni to get a chance to network with employers and also find out about opportunities with their organizations.”

Self’s internship with Tickets for Kids Charities began when she approached the company’s table and introduced herself to Program Director Carolyn Falk and an intern. She got a feel for the internship when Falk stepped away and she talked with the intern for a few minutes. 

“I got to speak with a current intern so it was like, ‘What’s the down low,’” Self said Sept. 16 in Lawrence Hall. “‘Tell me really what the internship is like.’ We got to speak in detail about his daily activities, [which were very hands on].”

Self, a sports, arts and entertainment management major, handed her resume to Falk when she returned and followed-up with an email two days after. A recommendation, a couple of emails and an interview later, Self was hired and started her internship that January. 

Self said the fair started her track to her internship with Tickets for Kids Charities. She said she went for the internship because of the relationship the organization had with Point Park.

 “It kind of was a security blanket,” Self said. “I knew they had been screened…through the Career Development Office. They have to be a credible organization. I know some students might sign up for an internship and it turn out to be phony. I did not want that experience. I did not want to go through that so it was very beneficial.”

Morgan’s involvement with the Career Development Office as a work-study helped her connect with employers during the Job Fair. 

“I have talked to a lot of employers there because I have had to help set up there, but I actually got my first internship through networking at the Job Fair,” Morgan said Sept. 18 in Lawrence Hall. “I interned my sophomore year with the American Red Cross.”

When she noticed the American Red Cross had internships prior to the fair, Morgan prepared her resume. She went to the organization’s table and spoke with the internship coordinator. Morgan made sure she followed-up with the Red Cross within a couple of days, and then she set up an interview.

Morgan got to work with the Armed Forces at Red Cross.

“I called and contacted people that were in crisis about life, and they had a family member that was overseas or on a base and they needed them to get back because of family emergencies,” Morgan said. “I did follow-ups to see how they were doing…was there anymore assistance they needed or anything like that.”

Stonebraker, a SAEM major, credits the fair for helping him to expand his network and allowing him to put himself out there with different employers including the Pittsburgh Penguins Foundation, Pittsburgh Power and Heinz Field among other companies. 

“[In] my three years of going, I think my big internship that I did for credit for 200 hours [was when] I spoke with the Riverhounds,” Stonebraker said Sept. 19 in Lawrence Hall. “We connected through [the fair], and I did get an internship through them. Every year, I networked with at least two companies.”

On the day of the fair, students will enter the Student Center where tables will be set up in the lobby. Students will have the chance to scan their identification cards to register, get a name tag and visit the accessories table if they are missing something from their attire. Students will then be led into the elevator to the fifth floor where they will be given a survey to fill out at the end of the event and a diagram of where all the employers are placed. A LinkedIn photo booth will also be at the fair for students looking to take a professional headshot. 

“I have been sending out emails every week with an updated list of employers and what they’re hiring for,” Scaramucci said. “My recommendation is for students to review that list, research the companies and then get an idea of which companies they want to talk to.” 

Scaramucci said doing that will allow students to make the most of the time they have, and it will also impress employers if students have taken the time to research their company. 

“Every student, if given the opportunity, they need to go dress professionally [and] see other students dress professionally,” Self said. “I don’t think a lot of people understand what it takes. You need to put your best foot forward. You need to network yourself because whenever you graduate it’s up to you.”