By Mariana Giacalone and Trinity Kerr

On Wednesday, February 21^st, from 3pm to 6pm, a mass of students were gathered in the Fine Arts building at St. Petersburg College’s Tarpon Springs campus for a career fair. Students from all over arrived in hopes of finding new career information from the different vendors.

During the event, students were met by different recruiters and representatives from local businesses and had the opportunity to learn about the benefits of working for the various companies. Students found a wide range of career opportunities from being a hostess at a restaurant to a Utilities Chemist.

Kristine, a recruiter for Cracker Barrel, spoke to students and enticed them with great benefits and schedule flexibility. “At Cracker Barrel, we have flexible scheduling hours. We have weekly paychecks. After a year of working with us, you become eligible for vacation pay. We have 401k Benefits. You become eligible for a raise each time you take one of our skill tests.” Kristine continued on, listing a seemingly never-ending list of benefits the company offers its employees.

During this event, there were also Army recruiters sharing information about different types of career jobs that the Army and the Air Force have to offer. One of the fascinating careers you can go experience through the military is called a cryptologic linguist. A cryptologic linguist examines foreign signs and communications when traveling to foreign countries. Other jobs the Army and the Air Force can offer are in the medical field. Representatives from the U.S. Air Force and the U.S. Army were present to explain to students the educational benefits of military positions.

Among all the different vendors, one quickly stood out. This vendor was not looking for employees. Rather, they were looking to find new voters. This vendor was the Voter Registration booth. Three women volunteers were at the event in hopes of finding bright, young students to register for the next election.

“I think it is critical that people vote. I think that is one of the most important things one can do in a society. You can march, you can do a lot of things, but it doesn’t make as big of an impact unless you vote,” said Tinker, one of the volunteers. Especially after seeing the response young people had to the recent tragedy at Douglas Highschool, Tinker believed it was important to try to reach out to the younger generation, especially those eligible to vote for the first time in their lives.

Finally, this event was concluded by a short panel, while the other vendors were wrapping up and cleaning their booths. Among this panel, representatives could be seen from the U.S. Army, a Law Firm, a technology company, and a worker for Pinellas County. These panelists were there to help answer the questions of students and were there to talk about their careers and give advice. Students were able to hear advice about job interviews, resume building, and transferable skills from a wide range of different perspectives.

Overall, this event was designed and created to help students work towards their immediate and future career goals. Any student who attended was able to come away with a lot of useful information. For any student looking for career information, be sure to attend the next career fair or stop by the Career Hub on campus!

Photos by Mariana Giacalone