Career Connections: Record Number of Students Attend Trent’s Career & Experience Expo
Connecting community partners with Trent students for work and placement opportunities
You need experience to gain experience. This is an issue that many students and newly graduated alumni face when entering the workforce: securing jobs with little experience outside a tradition classroom setting.
The Career & Experience Expo, hosted by Careerspace, is one of the many ways Trent works to support students overcome this issue ensuring that all Trent students have access to work, placement, volunteer and co-op opportunities before they graduate. The Career Expo has expanded beyond summer job opportunities to be more inclusive regarding the variety of opportunities available at the event, including entry-level and summer job positions, as well as, volunteer, placements and co-op opportunities, community-based research, or workplace projects.
These experiential learning opportunities are beneficial for students not only for the possibility of paid work but also for students to understand how they best fit into a workplace while gaining valuable experience in their field of study. It is also beneficial for employers who gain access to skilled labor for short periods of time.
“Through Careerspace at Trent University, our primary role is to facilitate this kind of experiential learning not only for the benefit of the students but for the betterment of the Peterborough community,” said Kelly Zatorski, manager, Careers & Experiential Learning.
Trent student Taylor Mailloux, currently working to complete a joint major in Psychology and Biology, had the opportunity at the event to speak at length with Dr. Alan McAllister, doctor of Psychology and owner of Attentive Minds therapy clinic located in Peterborough. The meeting was so successful that Dr. McAllister offered Ms. Mailloux an opportunity to interview for a lab assistance job this summer at his practice.
“I’ve hired Trent students in the past and have always had good luck. They are keen to learn but also bring a tremendous amount of knowledge with them,” said Dr. McAllister.
Ms. Mailloux was also thrilled with this opportunity: “I had no idea that when I walked in this morning I would walk away with a scheduled interview, and it’s not administrative work, its actually in my field of study assisting in a psychology lab with a research component. I am so thankful to Careerspace for hosting this event.”
Another highlight of the event was the participation alumni-turned-employers, including Ryan Williams ‘02 and Cassandra Beaver ’17, who now work for Ruralwave, a tech company providing internet service to rural Ontario communities that would not normally have easy access to the internet.
“I realized coming to Trent I needed to work in an environment that was in my field of study but also that wasn’t a huge corporation,” explained Mr. Williams. Ms. Beaver also explained her dedication to Trent and excitement at the potential of hiring Trent students: “I felt such a connection to Trent and I so happy to be here as an alum helping students find work opportunities.”
For more information regarding work and experiential learning opportunities for students and for information to employers looking to provide those opportunities please contact Careerspace.