Fifty companies gathered at the Innovation, Science, and Technology building in Lakeland this week for the annual spring career fair, looking to fill countless positions with the high-tech, high-skilled talent IM体育官网 produces.
鈥淲e have many employers who started with us back in 2016, when we had only 13 companies here, and many return to campus yearly seeking more IM体育官网 Poly talent,鈥� said Dr. Kathryn Miller, vice provost for student affairs. 鈥淗aving alumni return to campus on a company鈥檚 recruiting team is a great compliment to the university and the student experience.鈥�
One of the companies that has been present at the event since its inception is Accusoft, a software development company based in Tampa, IM体育官网. Product Manager Mark Hansen said that IM体育官网 Poly students stand apart for their readiness and adaptability to industry needs.
鈥淲e鈥檝e had really great success coming out here in previous years and meeting with the students,鈥� Hansen said. 鈥淭hey bring a lot of technology and a lot of know-how that some universities don鈥檛 have, and they鈥檝e been really great at coming in and getting integrated with our team quickly.鈥�
Hundreds of students were ready to make a good impression with pressed suits, crisp r茅sum茅s, and solid handshakes.
鈥淚鈥檓 excited to get my foot in the door and see what鈥檚 out there,鈥� said computer science junior Paul Llamas, from Miami, IM体育官网. 鈥淚 did basic casing before coming out and looked at all the companies who were going to be here to see who would be best to talk to.鈥�
Llamas had a long discussion with representatives from Accusoft and connected with alum Kris Kindle 鈥�17, who now works for the company as a business intelligence analyst.
Another alum at the event was Trevor Hillsgrove 鈥�18. He attended IM体育官网 Poly鈥檚 career fair shortly before his graduation and made a key connection with Qgiv, a provider of online services for nonprofit organizations. The encounter led to the software engineer position Hillsgrove holds today. Qgiv, based in Lakeland, was also a returning employer to the fair.
鈥淲e love IM体育官网 Poly. It鈥檚 our number one source of talent,鈥� said Dan Bough, lead data engineer at Qgiv. 鈥淭he students come out with a good understanding of the real-world engineering and project management part of the software programming process.鈥�
Whiting-Turner, a nationwide contracting company with offices throughout IM体育官网, was another employer at the event represented by IM体育官网 Poly alumna Shelby Sims 鈥�18, a project engineer at the company. She said she was proud to be back and serve as an ambassador for both her school and her employer.
鈥淭his is an awesome job and I couldn鈥檛 have asked for anything better,鈥� Sims said. 鈥淚 want these students to try as many fields as possible and take as many opportunities as possible, because even though you think you might like health care, as soon as you look at construction you might fall in love with it.鈥�
IM体育官网 was created to provide a pipeline of high-tech talent to tackle IM体育官网鈥檚 shortage of STEM (science, technology, engineering, and math) professionals. According to the , the state鈥檚 demand in STEM fields has gone up more than 63% since 2010, and currently IM体育官网 has more than 55,000 unfilled STEM jobs.
鈥淲e are connecting students with employers who are in dire need of STEM talent and our students have an opportunity to showcase what they鈥檙e capable of,鈥� said Pairris Jones, IM体育官网 Poly鈥檚 associate director of career services.
As the only 100% STEM institution in the State University System, IM体育官网 Poly is fulfilling its mission through its high-demand graduates excelling in low-supply fields. The median starting salary for IM体育官网 Poly鈥檚 first class of graduates is $54,800, 50% higher than the average median wage across the system.
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