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(l. to r.) Julie Addington '10, Derrick Tyler '10, Ray Wodarski '11, Dir. of Career Services, Cathy Rollman, Tyler Watkins '08, Sydney Jones '10, Heang Sok '10, Sarah Burgess, Career Counselor, Lora Richardson '10, and Alexa Durnwirth '11 |
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Students had the opportunity to interact with employers. |
Several Randolph-Macon College students participated in the first Career 15 Key Employer Panel, which was sponsored by the Virginia Foundation for Independent Colleges (VFIC). The event, which took place on Thursday, October 1, 2009 at the Boar’s Head Inn in Charlottesville, Virginia, provided students at VFIC member institutions with the opportunity to interact with employers on a personal level.
CAREER 15 is a unique resource that connects students and graduates of 15 respected Virginia liberal arts colleges with human resources staff looking for potential interns and employees. It was created by the VFIC to expand the career opportunities of students attending one of its 15 member colleges, and to serve the workforce needs of its corporate partners. This recruiting network is focused on bringing together a small, special group of student job seekers and the hiring managers of top-tier, Fortune 1000 level companies. R-MC President Robert R. Lindgren serves on the VFIC board of directors and the VFIC Career/Workforce committee, which oversees the Career 15 program.
“Each member institution was able to select the students who would represent their college or university, based on criteria set forth by the employers and the VFIC,” says Cathy Rollman, director of R-MC’s career services. “Selection criteria required students to be a junior or senior, have demonstrated leadership skills through participation in clubs, sports, volunteer work or campus events, and have enthusiasm about working for at least one of the key employers.”
Seven Randolph-Macon students, including R-MC’s Alexa Durnwirth ’11, VFIC Career 15 Student Advisory Council Representative, Sydney Jones ’10, Lora Richardson ’10, Julie Addington ’10, Heang Sok ’10, Ray Wodarski ’11, and Derrick Tyler ’10 were selected to participate in the event. Students had the opportunity to meet and interact with representatives from Altria, BB&T, Dominion, SunTrust and Verizon Wireless.
Each Fortune 1000 employer conducted a presentation about their company and the career and internship opportunities available. Students were able to ask the employers questions, and a networking lunch provided students with additional time to interact with employers. The afternoon session was organized like a mini career fair, and students were able to interact with and submit résumés to the companies in which they were interested.
“The event was very successful, and a lot of good information was shared with the students,” says Rollman. A highlight of the day for Randolph-Macon students was hearing from Tyler Watkins ’08, who was at the event representing Altria. “Students left the event feeling very positive about the connections they made,” says Rollman.
The VFIC is an organization that creates partnerships between individuals, the business community, and 15 Virginia liberal arts institutions. They are also a member of the the Foundation for Independent Higher Education (FIHE) which represents 37 state and regional funds and over 600 institutions of higher education nationwide, with more than 1.2 million students annually attending these colleges and universities.
For more information on R-MC’s Career 15 program, visit the Career Center at: http://www.rmc.edu/Offices/career/Career%2015.aspx