Students seek employment at university career fair

Hundreds of hopeful students met with potential employers at the University of Oklahoma’s annual Spring Career Fair. Attracting over 1,100 participants, the fair gave students the opportunity to stand out to employers from the teeming crowd of candidates. This year, 97 organizations attended, an unusually high number according to the event’s co-sponsor OU Career Services.

This career fair comes at an imperative time. The United States Department of Labor reports that unemployment among Millenials rose in January 2013 to 13.1 percent, the highest the statistic has been since the summer of 2012.

Energy corporations such as Lyondell Basell attended
PHOTO: Catherine Combes

OU Career Services Director Bette Scott claims students cannot afford to be too specific in the current job market.

“Your first job is just your first job,” Scott states. “It’s not where you’ll end up when you’re retired. You take that [first job] and the activities you are a part of and go on to the next job”.

Though Career Services provides many helpful tools and information, the process of finding employment remains daunting for graduates.

“Students wait too long to start their job search,” notes Scott. “They should’ve spent their whole senior year learning about the job process. It’s scary, and they don’t know what they want to do. So they put it off.”

Senior general management major Isabel Nierwinski is an example. She did not begin her job search until the spring semester and came to Wednesday’s fair hoping to connect with her future employer.

“The biggest challenge is getting over the fear and intimidation of talking to all these people,” claims Nierwinski. “Once you do, though, it’s not such a big deal.”

General management continues to be a growing field. Nierwinski remains optimistic about finding her first job and is not worried about the possibility of looking to other fields for employment.

“[General management] is what I’ve been going to school for for the past four years,” she asserts. “If I had to [look into other career fields], I would, but I want to try to find something that matches my interests and what I stand for.”

Not everyone, however, is as fortunate. OU Career Services encourages all students, no matter what year or major, to come by their offices on the third floor of the Oklahoma Memorial Union for help in preparing for life after graduation. Students can also find helpful tools and information at their website www.ou.edu/career. 

PWOP/SOP Assignment

 Kaila's Armor PHOTO: Catherine Combes

Old Science Hall PHOTO: Catherine Combes

Visiting Medievalist Reminds Norman, History Is Still Important

A visiting Medievalist reminded audiences of the value of antiquity this past Friday evening. Dressed in medieval garb, Dr. Stephen Law presented a slide show of his trip to the Bygdøy Viking Ship Museum in Norway to an audience of about 50 at the Norman Public Library. Local Medieval scholars in conjunction with the Norman Medieval Fair organized the event as part of a free Medieval Fair lecture series.

Liberal arts education budgets have shrunk over the past five years across the country and in Oklahoma. Law, however, continues to study the ancient past, making it tangible for his students at the University of Central Oklahoma and in his personal life.

“There’s nothing like being there. People can tell you all about Delhi, but until you actually go, you won’t understand why it’s worth the pilgrimage.”

Law used several of the 660 pictures he took at the museum of its three Viking boats the Oseberg, the Gokstad and the Tune to explain the Vikings’ evolution in naval technology. He says, “It was an honor to stand in the awe and majesty of the boats themselves.”

A regular at the Norman Medieval Fair, Law often showcases the small Viking faering boat he built in his garage according to medieval models. A sommelier of Viking Age beer, Law hosts tastings at the fair and the annual meeting of the International Congress on Medieval Studies.

Event coordinator Dr. Joe Sullivan says Law is dedicated to “recapturing and reliving the past” as he “marries the book knowledge with the practical and hands-on.” Sullivan, a professor of German Medieval Literature at the University of Oklahoma, collaborates with Dr. Joyce Coleman, a Medieval Literature professor at the University of Oklahoma, to invite medieval scholars from around the state to share their knowledge with the Norman public.

Though the lecture series is free, many in Friday evening’s crowd were Medieval Fair cast members or local medieval scholars. Dr. Amber Rose, a Classics and Letters professor at the University of Oklahoma, attended because of her academic interest.

“Any investigation of the past is worthwhile. Understanding what our values are and what we share as a culture are important.”

The Norman Medieval Fair would like to encourage the public to get involved. More information about the next lecture event and the Medieval Fair can be found at www.medievalfair.org.