The Office of Engineering Professional Practice’s Engineering Expo has become one of the premier events of the fall semester, a familiar presence for returning students.
Just as familiar? The expo setting new records.
This fall continued a string of record-setting levels of participation, both in terms of students and in businesses taking part in the event.
“Our expo is the premier on-campus recruiting event for our office,” said Office of Engineering Professional Practice Director Todd Reeves. “Having an increased turnout on both sides really adds to the benefit of both, as students have more opportunities to find potential landing spots and employers have a deeper pool of candidates.”
This year, there were 108 employers on hand, besting the previous record of 93 from the fall of 2018, while 1,104 students took part, easily surpassing last year’s record of 974.
On the first day of the expo, students meet one-on-one with prospective employers, with a second day set aside as an interview day for students to go through a formal interview process with companies that have an interest in them.
Junior biomedical engineering student Riley Toll, right, talks with a representative from Choice Spine at the expo.
“I just wanted to share that all of the employees that attended the career fair with Ametek were very impressed with the caliber of students they interacted with and then interviewed on the following day,” said Ametek’s Human Resource Director, Sempangi Jones. “We scheduled four students for on-site interviews. It was a great event and we look forward to getting a great intern and attending similar events in the future.”
The result of the first day’s interactions led to more than 1,500 interviews on day two, with Tennessee companies such as Barge Design Solutions, Bridgestone, DENSO, Delta Faucet, Eastman Chemical, FedEx, I.C. Thomasson Associates, International Paper, Nissan, MAHLE, Pictsweet, Pilot-Flying J, Strongwell, and TVA among those taking part.
Additionally, nationally known organizations including ABB, AT&T, Cargill, Discovery, Inc., Emerson, ExxonMobil, Garmin, Kimberly-Clark, PepsiCo, Procter & Gamble, Shaw Industries, Southern Company, and Texas Instruments helped fill out the expo’s location inside the concourse of Thompson-Boling Arena.
“I thought the expo went very smoothly and UT did a great job,” said Bradley K. Townsend, college recruiter for Shaw Industries. “We look forward to continuing our partnership with UT.”
Students taking part in internship and co-op experiences during the school year usually rotate off from school to work semesters with their host company, although some take their experience opportunities during the summer. Across all majors, students earn an average of $3,000 per month during their experiences.
Sophomore industrial engineering student Jenifer Rodriguez, left, talks to a pair of recruiters during the expo.
The Office of Engineering Professional Practice was founded in 1926 to help engineering students add experience to their education and prepare for the transition from student to employee through paid, educationally relevant co-op and internship opportunities.
The office maintains relationships with more than 500 businesses and interacts with more than 1,500 undergraduate students each year, helping them achieve more than 600 annual placements with participating companies.
Participation in the program is seen as essential by the Tickle College of Engineering, with 70 percent of eligible students taking part.
The Spring 2020 Engineering Expo will take place on February 19, with Interview Day to follow on the 20th.
Contact
David Goddard (865-974-0683, david.goddard@utk.edu)