THE INTERNET – Job hunters, start your computers! As the 2016 university calendar comes to a close the three members of the Florida Consortium of Metropolitan Research Universities; Florida International University, University of Central Florida, and University of South Florida are expected to graduate nearly 12,000 students. Nearly all of these students will be entering into a robust job market. According to the National Association of Colleges and Employers, college graduates will see 11% more jobs available this spring as compared to 2015 (NACE, 2016). With more jobs available, employers are turning to innovative ways to recruit the best student talent. For many this means turning to the web to not only post jobs like on websites such as Indeed and Linked-In but to also participate in virtual career fairs.
Virtual career fairs or VCFs are a great way for employers to meet with a large number of job seekers and is great for the job seeker looking to interact with a number of employers without the stress and expense of traveling to a live job fair. Hosted entirely online, these fairs allow students and employers to interact via chat sessions, webinar formats, and to view job listings and request more information or apply directly to a company representative. The format is perfect for tech savvy Millennials who are generally able to navigate technology with ease. These fairs are also good for the employers because they can interview a number of candidates in a short amount of time. In addition to Millennials these job fairs can also be beneficial to online students who may be place bound, students with disabilities who need assistive technology, and busy working students who can attend a fair for a few hours but may not have an entire day. The trend is so big that in 2014 the Wall Street Journal claimed we may have to say “So long, interview suit”.
On March 22nd, 2016 over 300 students from Florida Consortium Universities and alumni from a number of STEM majors including Computer Science, Information Technology, Computer Engineering, and Electrical Engineering met online with 15 companies that were hiring. These companies included AT&T, The Mayo Clinic, Verizon, and the Clark County School District. In all 341 students participated and 165 chat sessions were held. The fair allowed for students to interact on a number of platforms and as one student noted; “The (Virtual Career Fair) was definitely a very different and rewarding experience. Tons of networking and great employers locally and afar.” Another student mentioned the chat feature as a top way to interact with employers versus the older method of the cumbersome employer booth; “I think it’s great to be in a chat room where an employer can accommodate more than one person at a time versus being in a career fair booth. It eliminates that time constraint.”
The session was also important because it highlights the new way universities like FIU, UCF, and USF are working together to give students more access to employment opportunities. This fair lets students review and talk to recruiters from all over the country but also from the three major metro areas of Miami, Orlando, and Tampa. This can be an important way for a UCF student from Miami to explore opportunities back home. Traditionally these students living away from college may find getting employed back home more difficult because the local university does not have the same connections to employers.
The Florida Consortium will continue to produce these important events about every three months and look to expand the number of majors and courses of study to expand past the current STEM majors to allow even more students access. The Virtual Career Fair is just one program that the Florida Consortium sponsors in our effort to work more collaboratively as three large, metropolitan research universities. The Florida Consortium of Metropolitan Research Universities aims to produce more career-ready graduates with lower debt, better training and workforce skills that meet the demand of Florida’s growing economy. The Florida Consortium is a collaborative endeavor between Florida International University, the University of Central Florida, and the University of South Florida. Operationally formed with consultation and support from the Helios Education Foundation, the Consortium will grow the number of degreed professionals and positively impact Florida’s economic development. Consortium institutions serve 47% of State University System total enrollment and 54% of the state’s undergraduate minority enrollment.