Recruiters identify with nervous students

By Sara Conn

Campus Editor

Publication Date: 09/10/2008

Michael Carney | Staff Photographer

Jeff Mason, a senior in the College Engineering, speaks with one of the representatives from Merck, a pharmaceutical company, Tuesday at the Industrial Round Table.

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A career after college is not determined by rŽsumŽ credentials alone.

"A job fair is the first means by which we make contact," said David Mullaly, a Proctor and Gamble recruiter. "It takes (students) off the paper and makes them real."

Mullaly graduated from Purdue in 2006 but was back on campus Tuesday for the Industrial Roundtable. He said he identifies with the approximately 20,000 nervous students swarming Memorial Mall for the engineering job fair.

"The funny thing about recruiting is almost everyone was on the other side of the table once," he said.

Jessica Fox, a 2007 Purdue graduate, said she identifies with students that are unsure of their exact career path.

"I never thought I would be doing the job I am today, but I love it," she said.

Fox, also a Proctor and Gamble recruiter, said students who are confident, enthusiastic and well rounded stand out the most.

According to Mullaly, students are always welcome to speak with recruiters although Proctor and Gamble only hires approximately 10 students during the Industrial Roundtable. He said the company keeps a database of more than 100 possible candidates for future opportunities.

"We try to keep tabs on everybody who comes to the table," he said.

Valerie Duncan, a 2007 Purdue graduate, said Valdes Engineering Company only hires a few students interested in permanent positions. The engineering consulting company includes approximately 200 employees but Duncan said she enjoys the office atmosphere of a smaller business.

"It's a close-knit atmosphere and you get to know everyone you're working with."

She said smaller companies have several things to offer graduates and that students shouldn't be afraid to approach the table, regardless of the company's size.

"Interaction is important; you can tell a lot just in the first couple minutes."

The Industrial Roundtable job fair will continue from 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. today in Purdue Memorial Mall and is directed toward engineering students. The event is organized by the Purdue Engineering Student Council and there is no registration fee.