Employers set up tables Thursday morning while waiting for students to arrive at the Spring Internship, Co-Op and Career Fair. 

“We’ve always had good luck at Kent,” said Kenyon Mav, a representative for Crossroads Health. Also there with Crossroads Health was Kent State alumni Danielle LeGallee. 

She recently graduated from Kent State and found her current job at the Spring Career Fair. She said when she came to the fair she had come with 20 resumes, a list of who she wanted to talk to and she followed up with all the employers she spoke with. 

The employers said what stands out most about Kent State students compared to students at other career fairs is how prepared the students come.

“Kent has good professors and we have a lot of connections here,” said Eric Thompson of AIL Midwest. 

AIL Midwest said most of their top leadership has come from Kent State. They do about 15 career fairs a year and most of their hires come from Kent State. They are impressed with how open-minded the campus and the students are. 

Soarb Myrtaj, a junior business management major, said he was just walking around when Christie from Waffle House stopped him because she saw he was business management and she wanted to tell him about the opportunities they offered. 

“The employers are really friendly,” Myrtaj said. He came to the Career Fair with many copies of his resume and a well-practiced elevator pitch. 

The software company Yardi said they get a lot of good students from Kent. They have been coming to the Career Fair for at least eight years now and said they come back because of the computer programs here. 

“The students are always well-dressed, prepared and have relevant skills,” said Kevin Fodrey from Yardi.

Girl Scouts of North East Ohio have come to the fair for at least three years now. They said one thing they recommend for students is to be open to more opportunities than just what they are looking for. 

“Attitude is everything, you can learn anything,” said Lisa Maida, representative for Girl Scouts while describing a story about a previous Kent State student. She said the girl started by working in their summer camps and now has moved up into the HR job she was originally looking for. 

Kevin George, a junior finance major, said he was there just to make connections. He already has an internship for the summer but wanted to make the connection with employers now so when he is looking for a full-time position he already has made those connections. He is looking forward to speaking with Progressive and Goodyear.

Emily Walters is a jobs and money reporter. Contact her at [email protected].