First and foremost, the Career Fair was an intriguing experience. Moreover, I conversed with different companies in retail, law enforcement/legal field, health care, and more. Some of the companies I conversed with were Worthington Industries, Amtrak, Walgreens, Target, The Federal Bureau of Investigation, United States Postal Services, and Klynveld Peat Marwick Goerdeler or KPMG. Some of the companies I spoke with have legal teams that can help me gain experience in the legal field. Whereas, other companies were more government based. But overall, I had a good experience at the career fair.
Furthermore, the first company I met at the career fair was Walgreens. Thus, they were the Walgreens company headquartered in Deerfield Illinois. I introduced myself, and provided a pitch, and they informed me that they had a legal team that I would be able to work with if I interned with the company. I did fill out an application to stay in contact with them for future updates. Also, I emailed my resume to one of the team members for consideration.
Additionally, I spoke with the Federal Bureau of Investigations about their 2024 internship opportunities. So, the FBI has a ten week paid internship that allows individuals to discover opportunities that match their career interests. The application for 2024 was due on September 20. However, as an FBI intern, students would attend trainings and briefings, support investigations, and tackle wide-ranging projects with some of the most talented minds in the industry. The internships are located in Washington D.C., Quantico, and across the nation. This opportunity is open to both undergraduate and graduate students. Ultimately, this was one of the companies I was interested in.
Nonetheless, I also spoke with KPMG. I spoke with them about some of their different roles. And I informed them about my recent experience being a remote extern for PwC and Paragon One. I filled out an application for their advisory role and met with their recruiter Ms. Shaquita Banks. The KPMG company was excited to hear that I had already had experience from one of the Big Four accounting organizations. KPMG is one of the world’s leading professional service firms and the fastest growing Big Four accounting firm in the United States. The following day I had to update my resume and send it back to the recruiter.
Notably, I visited Worthington industries. I spoke with Lana Way the HR Coordinator at Worthington Industries. We discussed their eleven week internship program that builds personal and professional skills beyond the classroom. The project based program combines on the job experience with classroom learning and project ownership, as well as community involvement to provide a well rounded experience. Hence, the program is used by Worthington Industries to identify potential future employees. There are a variety of opportunities available at Worthington in Engineering, Information Technology, Operations and Supply Chain, Human Resources, Accounting & Finance, Data Analytics, Marketing, Sales, DE&I and more!
Finally, the last company I spoke with was the United States Postal Service. I found out that they have an internship program and a program for recent graduates. USPS Intern program is a 10 week program where interns will complete a project aligned with their concentration and USPS business needs. In order to participate in the internship, applicants have to be a rising junior or senior, a first year master’s degree student currently en at a university. The applicant has to have a concentration in a discipline of Human Resources, Psychology, Marketing, Information Technology, Data Analytics, Operations Management, Supply Chain and Business Administration. The Professional Development Program is the other program for recent graduates. Thus, the program includes an accelerated career path, professional development training, interaction with various levels of leadership, the advantage to earn a competitive salary with benefits, and the opportunity to continue educational opportunities upon completing the program.
Overall, the 2023 Fall Career Fair was an excellent experience. Also, it allowed me to think about what opportunities I could have as I get closer to graduating from college in December 2023. I was very happy to find opportunities that not only relate to law, which is the field that I intend to pursue, but also opportunities to work in government as well. I think my overall favorite companies were The Federal Bureau of Investigation and KMPG. Because both companies relate to each side of my major and allows me to further my experience in the government or legal matters.