Over 350 CU Denver Business School students rushed into the Mile High Stadium early in the morning on Friday, October 5, hoping to get a chance to meet their dream employers.
More and more, recruiters are hiring earlier in the season for summer internships and jobs. Even though the career fair is held in the fall, CU Denver students knew that this was a major opportunity to put a face to their application. Handshakes and business card exchanges result in more meaningful connections than any single application ever could.
The fifth annual Colorado Business Career Fair had over 130 employers across industries looking to hire students for multiple positions. Employers who attended the career fair varied from small tech-startup companies to Fortune 100 companies.
Some of the companies in attendance included Arrow Electronics, Marketo, Charles Schwab, Gates, S&P Global, TIAA, Transamerica, Frontier Airlines, and CoBank.
The career fair was a collaboration between the University of Denver, Colorado State University, and the University of Colorado Denver business schools. Students from these universities received elite access for an hour at the beginning of the fair.
Our Business Career Connections team is the key to success
In preparation for the fair, the Business Career Connections (BCC) office hosted various career fair workshops for students. Each workshop helped students identify their top companies, practice their elevator pitch, and provided background knowledge of each company.
Aparna Vaidyanathan, MS Information Systems student, went to one of the Career Fair Prep workshops, because she knew this career fair was critical for her. By the end of the session, she knew exactly what companies she was going to target and how to research them before meeting them in person.
Graduating in December, this was her best chance at making a meaningful connection. “It was really helpful that I had the opportunity to connect with my top-listed companies first,” Vaidyanathan said.
Another student, Nicolas Gomez, is getting his BSBA in Management. He took advantage of the BCC, setting up a meeting with an advisor to discuss his best options. Based on his interests, she told him to focus on supply chain companies and make sure to research the companies he was most interested in.
“I’m looking for a full-time job after I graduate, but I’m going into the career fair looking to make some connections and find a fit for me.” – Nicolas Gomez
“I’m looking for a full-time job after I graduate, but I’m going into the career fair looking to make some connections and find a fit for me,” Gomez said. The career fair was a success for Gomez. He left with a number of business cards in hand and a much better idea of companies he wanted to apply to.
Employers impressed with preparedness
Employers were thoroughly impressed with the CU Denver Business School students throughout the career fair. TIAA’s HR Manager, Chad Gutierrez shared, “When I see a name tag with ‘CU Denver Business’ on it, I know that I’m talking to a high-quality candidate.”
“When I see a name tag with ‘CU Denver Business’ on it, I know that I’m talking to a high-quality candidate.” – TIAA HR Manager, Chad Gutierrez
Gutierrez went on to talk about how Fortune 100 companies are hiring at tremendous rates, because of low unemployment. He shared, “It’s a great time to be a student in the job market.” He also appreciated the connection to CU Denver’s Business Career Connections team, because “CU Denver presents the best opportunity for us to recruit. I love talking to Sue and Stephanie, because we know CU Denver students come out prepared.”
Allison Ellis, a recruiter from Marketo, said that this career fair was his favorite to attend because of the great turnout.
At the end of the fair, he noted an interesting trend about CU Denver students. “One thing that is unique about CU Denver students is that most of them work full-time and they understand how to shuffle and juggle the work-life balance.” That ability to balance priorities is something he looks for in potential hires.
“One thing that is unique about CU Denver students is that most of them work full-time and they understand how to shuffle and juggle the work-life balance.” – Marketo Recuiter, Allison Ellis
Connections in the heart of downtown Denver
Recruiters know how daunting career fairs can be for students. Gutierrez shared what he saw to be the value proposition that CU Denver brings to its students. “Students want to attend CU Denver because their career services team partners with organizations like TIAA and other major Fortune 100 companies who are hiring,” he said. “If I were looking for a school right now to be a student, I would be highly considering one that’s in the center of downtown Denver, right in the mix of it all.”
With new business cards in hand and LinkedIn connections accepted, CU Denver students did the Business School proud with their professionalism and preparedness. The Business Career Connections team is looking forward to helping turn those conversations into job and internship offers.
