McKenzie Campbell
Staff Writer
If you’re a college student, you’ve probably heard of a job search app called Handshake, and you might get frequent emails from The University of North Carolina at Greensboro about attending career fairs through this app.
A word of advice: if you are ignoring these emails because you’re unaware of just how life-changing Handshake can be, it’s time to stop and start reading.
Handshake has never been more useful as students not only move online for class, but also move online for job hunting and recruiting. To their benefit, UNCG hosts frequent career fairs through this app that are available to enrolled students of every grade and major.
More so, there are job openings for seniors looking for work after graduation, but also internships for freshmen, sophomores and juniors who are in search of experience.
Local nonprofits and companies like World Triad Relief, State Employees Credit Union, Peace Corps, Autism Learning Partners and Teach for America frequently show up at these virtual career fairs to look for determined students to complete semester-long internships and help them find lifelong careers.
As a senior getting ready to graduate in August, I recently decided to go to one of these job fairs. Finally free from work and having completed all my assignments up to that point with nothing else to do, I thought – what do I have to lose?
Little did I know I would find a career that spoke to me so much that I’m seriously considering applying for it today. I was able to speak with a local recruiter for the Peace Corps about the possibility of moving to another country to teach English abroad for two years.
Traveling has always been a dream of mine, and I may have just found a way to do it while also being able to pursue a job, make money and immerse myself in an unknown culture.
Has a career in teaching ever crossed my mind? No, because I’m not an English Education Major. I didn’t think it was possible for me to teach with just a Bachelor of Arts in English.
However, in some ways, it is possible, and I might not have known that had I not taken advantage of the career fair opportunities provided by UNCG through Handshake.
During these events, students can request one-on-one or even group sessions with their desired employers where they can ask questions, make impressions and form lasting connections that can help their application stand out against everyone else’s.
What’s great about this is that students can do this with numerous companies, because each company has multiple 30 and 10-minute time slots to fit a flexible schedule. You get the opportunity to speak with different people about different jobs without even leaving the comfort of your home.
Don’t miss out on a chance like this. A pandemic might have changed the way the world works, but we are still moving forward and looking to the future with hope. Who knows – your future might be one virtual career fair away!
THE CAROLINIAN 
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