Maryville College Career Fair brings in a broad array of businesses to recruit Scots
Nov. 13, 2024
The Maryville College Career Center has successfully executed the 2024 Career and Internship Fair, which took place on Thursday, Nov. 7, but for Dr. Niklas Trzaskowski and his team, the work never stops.
The event saw almost 450 students pass through the Clayton Center for the Arts, where companies, organizations, businesses and job recruiters set up tables and booths to find potential permanent hires and seasonal interns among the population of Scots.
“We were able to bring the largest number of organizations (businesses, government agencies, nonprofits) to campus for a career fair since at least 2021,” said Trzaskowski, director of the MC Career Center. “We had more than 50 organizations attending the fair ranging from government agencies to nonprofits to some of the largest employers in East Tennessee. In addition to welcoming back several companies, we were able to welcome several organizations that did not attend last year’s fair.”
And, he added, several businesses that set up at the Career Fair for the first time. Sgt. Jade Reneau with the Tuscaloosa Police Department in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, made the 311-mile trip to MC as part of a department-wide effort to widen the net of prospective applicants, he said, and a number of students discovered that the liberal arts education provided by Maryville College provides them with a firm foundation of skill sets that make them desirable employees even outside of their chosen majors.
Lainey Hudolin ’23, for example, was a Mathematics major at MC and now works as a business planning specialist for global auto parts manufacturer DENSO, one of the largest employers in Blount County. Her role, she said, is to determine the profitability of certain electronic products based on the billing of materials and production costs, and while math is certainly a large part of her job, so is everything else she learned as an MC student.
“I work with so many Maryville College graduates, and I can’t explain to you the presentation skills I have to have in this job,” she said. “I do a lot of investment approvals, and I have to present to higher-ups in our investment group, and it’s not uncommon to present multi-million dollar investment opportunities. I have to make sure I’m clear and precise in what I’m saying, and I use all of my education in my job.”
DENSO officials selected Hudolin to represent the company at the Career Fair precisely because of her ties to the College. Kassandra Severiano ’22 was another MC grad who found herself on the other side of the presentation table last week, this time as a representative of 21st Mortgage. Her role with the company, she said, is directly tied to the assistance she got from the Career Center.
“After I graduated, I was a little lost on where to go, so I went to the Career Center, and they connected me with 21st,” she said. “Now, I’m a financial counselor, and I reach out to customers to answer any questions they have about their loans. It’s just a great company culture here that’s super team-oriented, and everyone cares for each other. That’s so similar to Maryville College, in that both organizations want you to grow.”
“Students always come first in the Career Center,” Trzaskowski said. “We are here to support their career development while they are here and even after they graduate. Our services are available from their first day on campus and we welcome students from all levels and all majors. We provide one-on-one coaching appointments where students can learn more about steps they can take to locate and secure opportunities. We assist students with their search for opportunities, review application documents, and help them strengthen their interview skills.
“Additionally, all our current students have access to Handshake, a powerful online platform that not only allows students to search for opportunities nationwide, but also hosts a resource library curated by our staff with helpful guides that student can access on-demand to assist in their career development. Students also have access to SkillsFirst that allows them to compose effective resumes. Our staff serves as guest lecturers on a variety of topics in the classroom and work hard to organize visits to campus by different organizations, including graduate programs.”
The opportunity to “try it before you buy it” when it comes to careers and post-graduate opportunities also played a large role in last week’s Career Fair. A number of organizations promoted internships with their companies, like Harrah’s Cherokee Casino Resort, which put together a booth for the first time at MC. A two-hour commute to North Carolina isn’t practical, said Recruitment Services Supervisor Benny Graves, but summer internships for those willing to spend 15 weeks in the N.C. mountains are ideal for giving students a feel for the industry.
“A lot of people think of a casino and assume you have to be 21 to work there, but that’s not the case,” Graves said. “We have so many roles, from food and beverage to human resources to engineering to marketing, and a lot of those internships are designed for those 18- to 20-year-olds who are looking for a career.”
Internships, practicums and more
Most of the businesses at the fair went out of their way to promote a broad spectrum of opportunities for MC students. Kathleen Rice, a corporate recruiter for Covenant Health, went above and beyond to explain to interested Scots that the company needs all manner of professionals, not just those in forward-facing healthcare roles.
“I hire for the corporate side of things like finance, accounting and IT, and I like to tell engaged applicants that there’s a lot more to healthcare than hands-on patient care,” she said. “There’s a whole backside of it that people do that keeps our facilities up and running.”
Bethany Anderson, a staffing coordinator at Blackberry Farm, echoed Rice’s sentiments, pointing out that the College’s new Hospitality and Regional Identity program of study has opened up even more opportunities for MC graduates to find a career at the luxury resort.
“We’re super excited to work with those students and the program, because our office is right next door to the new Maryville College Downtown Center,” Anderson said. “We love to make connections, help them see what programs we offer, and help the students find jobs with us in everything from guest services to the front desk to housekeeping to our manager-in-training program. It’s just exciting to help students grow in their careers.”
Few individuals were more excited last Thursday than Trzaskowski, who was a whirling dervish of activity as he and Leah Hadder, the College’s career and internship coach, shepherded long lines of students through the Clayton Center and attended to the needs of participants.
“Several of our students are very determined in knowing what they want to do after they graduate,” Trzaskowski said. “They often approach these events as an opportunity to discover if an organization will have careers available that match their interest. Many other students use our events as an opportunity to explore and to find out more about organizations as well as opportunities available to them both while they are still in school through internships and after they graduate.”
Grace Biggs ’25, a Business Management major who will graduate in the spring, was one of the latter. She visited numerous tables and said the Career Fair gives her an opportunity to see company roles that may not be readily apparent in marketing materials.
“I think it’s really neat to see what other jobs there are, because as a Business Management major, I hear a lot about Clayton and 21st Mortgage, because they’re our big community partners,” she said. “It’s nice to be able to meet their representatives and learn what the job actually looks like.”
That inquisitive nature was impressive to Clayton HR Generalist Brandon Thompson, who chuckled at the thought of attending a career fair during his own first year of College. That so many MC students showed up to ask intelligent questions is just another reason the company maintains a strong relationship with the Career Center.
“Students today, they’re learning things we weren’t taught when I was in college, and we want to take that, hone it, advance it, and give them an opportunity to grow,” he said. “There are things I wasn’t told as a freshman that I want to pass along, like looking for a company with a culture that promotes a healthy work-life balance and all of the things we need professionally, but mentally and personally as well. And we do all of that at Clayton.”
“Being ‘of and for the region’ means making sure our region continues to have a workforce that has the critical skills that will help organizations to thrive and grow,” Trzaskowski added.
Area businesses interested in recruiting on campus or hiring a Maryville College graduate, or wanting to find out more information about future tabling opportunities like the Spring Opportunities Fair set for March 20, 2025, should not hesitate to contact the Career Center, he added, at careercenter@maryvillecollege.edu.
