Alumna Melana Cook knows the power of Stanislaus State’s career and professional development resources.
A first-generation transfer student from Modesto Junior College, she signed up in fall 2020 for CareerReadyU (CRU) and began taking advantage of the program’s many services. A year later, she was a Stan State senior with a polished resume, an elevator pitch and an active presence on the HireStanState online career platform, networking at her first career fair — a Meet the Firms Night.
By winter break, it all paid off.
“Seven months before graduation, I had already signed a full-time job offer with Deloitte, a multinational accounting firm,” said Cook, who transitioned seamlessly from college to career after graduating with a bachelor’s degree in business administration, accounting in May 2022.
“It was via HireStanState and with guidance and support from CRU that I landed interviews and multiple job offers,” Cook said. “And with my Stan State education, I could not have been better prepared for my chosen career.”
Cook’s story is a good example of how students can benefit from participating in the career fairs, CRU program, HireStanState and other career resources offered by Stan State.
This spring, two career fairs are being offered to students of all majors and recent alumni: The Spring ’23 Career and Internship Fair on Wednesday, March 1, from 1-4 p.m. in the Event Center and the Last Chance Career Fair planned for the Quad on Thursday, May 4.
Both fairs are free and proving popular with area employers eager to connect with the workforce-ready students of Stan State.
“Employer spots at the March 1 fair are filled. We sold out in three days,” said Career and Professional Development Center Executive Director Julie Sedlemeyer. “And employer spots at the May 4 fair are already 95% filled. There is obviously no shortage of employers interested in Stan State students and alumni.”
On Monday and Tuesday, Feb. 27 and 28, students can visit the Warrior Wardrobe if they need free professional clothes for the fair. They can also get their resumes critiqued by a career coach on those days. Appointments for Warrior Wardrobe, career coaches and headshots can be made on the HireStanState platform using their email address and the link under the Warrior sign-in box that says, “log in using your Handshake credentials.”
According to Sedlemeyer, students should not plan to make last-minute visits to the Career and Professional Development Center on Wednesday, the day of the career and internship fair, because the office will be closed while staff works at the fair.
Students are encouraged to attend career fairs well before their senior year because the fairs introduce them to careers and opportunities within their fields of study, as well as enable them to network with companies in order to develop future contacts and employment opportunities, Sedlemeyer said.
She added that it’s beneficial for students to engage early in their academic journeys with CRU, HireStanState and all the other career services offered by Stan State.
“We want students to come to us early and engage with us often. We want to connect them to career coaches, internships, service learning, whatever they need to be career-ready,” said Sedlemeyer. “We don’t want to be Stan State’s best-kept secret.”
