Tulane hosts career fair

The New Orleans Career Services Offices will hold their annual Mardi Gras Career Fair 1 - 5 p.m. Wednesday at the Louisiana Superdome.

Members of NOCSO include Dillard University, Loyola University of New Orleans, Southern University of New Orleans, Tulane University Career Services, A.B. Freeman School of Business Career Services, Xavier University of New Orleans and the University of New Orleans.

Employers represented at the fair include the Central Intelligence Agency, Halliburton, New York Life Insurance Company, the Peace Corps, the U.S. Department of Labor, Wal-Mart, Teach for America and Wells Fargo.

Barry Thompson, director of the Tulane University Career Center, said he believes Tulane students will benefit enormously from the event.

“The fair gives the opportunity to get in touch with careers,” Thompson said. “It allows sophomores and juniors the opportunity to look for internships and seniors to look for permanent positions.”

Thompson said he believes that the fair provides experience in networking and marketing for students.
“Networking is basically the ability to introduce yourself and share information in a brief amount of time,” Thompson said. “It’s sharing two or three things that set you apart, that whet the recruiter’s interest and make him want to know more. Marketing is not a selfish thing; it’s making sure that person knows about your abilities, and begins the foundation of a relationship.”

Freshman Jennifer Edelson said she plans to attend the fair.

“It’s great for networking and getting your name out there,” Edelson said. “Lots of students have an idea of what they want to be, but with this economy that may not be attainable. Career fairs can help you hear about jobs you didn’t know existed.”

Freshman Julianne Sigler said she agrees that career fairs are useful for finding potential future jobs.
“It is really important for students to see what jobs are available,” she said. “Fairs like these really help people find out what sorts of jobs they’re interested in. I definitely want to go.”

The university will provide a shuttle service outside of the Navy ROTC Building on Freret Street beginning at 12:30 p.m.