Gannon University hosted a Career Fair for students on Tuesday at their iHack building.

Although the school year has just begun, students are already thinking about what comes after they graduate.


Dr. Alyson Eagle, the Assistant Director of Employer Relations at Gannon University explained why the career fair was a great opportunity for students to practice their career skills, "They can start networking and start building up a resume, working on their professional etiquette networking skills, interviewing skills."


Gannon University's Career Fair let current students and alumni connect with businesses regionally and nationally. As Dr. Eagle explained, "Erie County has no shortage of job opportunities. It's just students have to find the right fit for them, which is the reason for a career fair and industries across the, you know, all different industries."


The career fair allowed students to gain confidence in their professional skills. Jeremiah Vezza, a Mechanical Engineering Senior said, "Just to communicate and more than anything, gain information. Whether or not I get hired, I want to learn what these companies do and maybe some how they do it, just so I can have that as I go forward again."


Sixty-five local, regional and national companies were represented during the job fair, many of them looking to hire students full time, and others looking for interns too. One of the larger companies present was UPMC, where recruiters said they've seen hiring trends change.
Ryan Hamilton, a UPMC Financial Manager Analyst explained, " I think the landscape has changed a lot within the past five years, mainly due to Covid, but also other competing factors as well."


Hamilton said it's all about competing to hire and retain employees. "We're in a marketplace right now. We're competing nationally with organizations across the United States and so we really want to make sure we get some face time with these students to show them what UPMC brings to the table and what they can bring in terms of contributions to our organization", said Hamilton.