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COM to hold first Employer Week

The College of Communication hosts an Employer Week from Oct. 16-20. PHOTO BY MEGHANA PATNANA/ DFP FILE PHOTO

Boston University College of Communication will be holding its first-ever Employer Week, a weeklong career fair catered to each of the school’s majors, next week.

During Employer Week, COM Career Services will conduct career information sessions with students as well as facilitate formal and informal student interviews with job recruiters, according to assistant director of Employer Relations Patrick Nelson.

Nelson, who is responsible for the planning and logistics, wrote in an email that the school organized the fair in order for students to gain exposure to various communication industries, with possible job opportunities ranging from co-ops to full-time jobs.

“We want our students to feel truly prepared and confident in themselves when approaching their career interests through the various workshops we provide,” Nelson wrote. “As a result of this preparation, our students should excel when exposed to our COM employers.”

Nelson wrote that he hopes the fair will promote the career-oriented services offered by the school’s Career Service office for students.

Representatives from a variety of media and publications companies — including CNN, The Boston Globe, WCVB-TV, Creative Artists Agency, Burson-Marsteller, Horizon Media and TBWA\Worldhealth — will be recruiting interested students at the fair.

COM began planning the employer visits back in April in order to accommodate the busy recruiting schedules of big companies like Amazon and CNN, Nelson wrote. The weeklong schedule will offer a more flexible itinerary for both students and employers.

Employer Week differs from traditional COM career fairs, which are held once a semester and last for a single day. Nelson wrote that the companies participating in this fair will be more tailored to students’ needs and have a more specific agenda.

“They are attending with a specific goal in mind, and their audiences are usually catered more directly to their recruiting needs,” he wrote.

The fair — the first of if its kind at BU — is also meant to help students think ahead about how to advance their careers while at BU and after graduation, Assistant Dean of Undergraduate Affairs Bill Taylor said.

Any time COM has an opportunity to build bridges toward potential internships and careers in the communication field, it creates opportunities and experiences for our students,” Taylor said. 

Taylor added that the fair will offer an easy way for students to access communication industry experts and employers in one setting.

“As a result of the Career Services team’s hard work, not only do students benefit from the opportunities presented, but the employers benefit by being introduced to future communication professionals as well,” he noted.

Nelson said COM hopes to make Employer Week an annual event if employers’ schedules permit.

“If the employer is interested in recruiting COM students, we will find a way to get them here that fits their schedule appropriately,” Nelson wrote.

Several COM students said they think Employer Week will be a helpful way for students to gather information about possible careers.

Eunice Lee, a junior studying mass communication, said she thinks this career fair will be useful for students to network and find employment opportunities.

“Breaking [the fair] off into a daily thing for a week is a good idea for students who can’t make one day because at least there will be other days you can go,” she said.

Additionally, Mary Robbins, a sophomore and advertising major, said she finds the breadth of the recruiters’ fields impressive.

“It allows people to explore more majors within COM if they are undecided,” Robbins said. “This would also be a great way to explore minors.”

Hannah Freeman, a sophomore studying film and TV, said she appreciates how the Employer Week intends to be more inclusive and convenient than the job fairs already offered by COM.

“It is really useful,” Freeman said. “I never really can attend the COM job fairs that are just one day because either my schedule doesn’t align with it or they don’t have any film employers.”

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