The Gainesville community is ready to rein in more of the talent coming out of the University of Florida.
The first ever “Stay in the Swamp” Career Fair took place Thursday, drawing local companies to pitch their business to interested students. Hosted by the Graduate Business Career Services (GBCS) office at the Hough Graduate School of Business, the free event offered a unique format for students to learn more about local career opportunities.
The roster of companies scheduled to appear at the event included Alachua County, Altavian, Eatable, Enterprise, EthosU, Grooveshark, GRU, Infinite Energy, Info Tech, LifeSouth, RTI Biologics, Totuit and Walmart.
For the first hour of the event, each of the companies was given three minutes to “elevator pitch” their mission and background to students. Following the pitches, the remaining two hours of the career fair were spent networking and learning about potential internships and full-time positions. Selected candidates will return to Hough Hall on Friday to have formal interviews with the companies.
“There is such a push to keep talent in Florida,” said Craig Petrus, the director of GBCS. “That message has come from Florida Governor Rick Scott and from the University of Florida President Bernie Machen. Everyone associated with GBCS and the Hough Graduate School of Business is eager to help our talented students and alumni receive jobs and internships in the state of Florida.”
“Stay in the Swamp” was co-sponsored by Florida Works and the Gainesville Area Chamber of Commerce.
For more information about GBCS, visit warrington.ufl.edu/graduate/gbcs.
