OSU Institute of Technology's Virtual Career Fair will return for the spring trimester to allow students and employers to connect for career opportunities and internships. The career fair will be held online March 9 from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. on the virtual platform known as Handshake.

This spring's Career Fair provides opportunities for industry partners to meet with OSUIT's highly skilled and trained students in Truck Technician, Engineering & Construction Technologies and Creative & Information Technologies and discover opportunities for new career placement.

“Employers are dedicating time specifically to meet with OSUIT students,” said Angela Byars, organizer of OSUIT's industry fairs through the Division of Academic Affairs. “Our industry partners have a long-standing relationship with OSUIT and have confidence in the skill set our students graduate with. They are here looking to hire! The first virtual event in the fall was very successful in connecting students with employers leading to many job interviews.”

This newer virtual platform requires employers and students to register in the Handshake platform. Employers will create group and one-on-one sessions that students will be able to sign up for. The interaction is via video conferencing, similar to other major video platforms.

“If we can’t come to campus to connect with students directly, Handshake acts as a great tool for us to meet and talk to students,” said Rachel O’Donnell, senior advisor, University Relations & Recruiting, Talent Acquisition at Phillips 66. “Phillips 66 representatives from Refining and Midstream get the chance to have private one to one conversations with students and talk about their job aspirations and our open positions.”

The event allows students to make connections, meet representatives from potential employers and internship sponsors in their field of study, and learn about future career opportunities.

“We like to reach out to students using the Handshake messaging feature,” said O’Donnell. “It gives students the opportunity to learn about our open positions and ask questions in advance of the career fair.”

Handshake also provides a library of supporting material online for both students and employers to make their participation a success. Students can get ready for the career fair by watching the video “Handshake How-To: First Five Fays on Handshake” on YouTube.

For more information about the spring Career Fair, visit osuit.edu/careerfair or contact Angela Byars at angela.byars@okstate.edu.