Spring Break
Social work job fair hits campus
Samie Hartley
Issue date: 1/24/07 Section: News
San Jose State University students and alumni seeking employment in the social work field found a variety of job and internship opportunities at the Bridging the Gap Social Work Internship/Career Fair on Tuesday.
Sixty employers set up information tables, the largest turnout so far since the fair started six years ago, said Masters Social Work Program Coordinator Peter Allen Lee.
Agencies such as Alameda County Social Services, Families First Inc., and Women's Crisis Center were on hand to tell fairgoers about the various job positions available in the Bay Area and throughout California.
Lee said the fair is a place for graduate students to find job opportunities and undergraduate students to find future internships.
"We try to teach the value of networking," Lee said. "We just want students come. That's all we ask. We like them to come with a resume or at least an idea of what they are looking for. It's important for the students to circulate and meet people."
Roy Alday, a December 2006 graduate from the School of Social Work, attended the fair to gather information.
"This is a good opportunity to meet with potential employers," Alday said.
Fair attendants had the chance to talk with representatives such as Patrick Wiley of Starlight Adolescent Center who sought students who graduated with a bachelor's degree in social work to counsel teens with emotional disorders.
"These opportunities provide on-hand experience, so while the pay is not so good, the experience is very valuable," Wiley said, who said he was at the fair networking with students to fill 10 positions.
Alum Rock Counseling Center program manager Amy Wright was stationed at the fair looking for students to fill positions in the Center's new internship program.
"We are looking for culturally aware students who want to help kids and want to learn more about the field," Wright said.
Among the 120 representatives at the fair, Lindsay Culp, regional recruiter for the Peace Corps, offered a different opportunity for students. The Peace Corps needs volunteers to spend 27 months in various countries around the world such as the Philippines where Culp volunteered.
Sixty employers set up information tables, the largest turnout so far since the fair started six years ago, said Masters Social Work Program Coordinator Peter Allen Lee.
Agencies such as Alameda County Social Services, Families First Inc., and Women's Crisis Center were on hand to tell fairgoers about the various job positions available in the Bay Area and throughout California.
Lee said the fair is a place for graduate students to find job opportunities and undergraduate students to find future internships.
"We try to teach the value of networking," Lee said. "We just want students come. That's all we ask. We like them to come with a resume or at least an idea of what they are looking for. It's important for the students to circulate and meet people."
Roy Alday, a December 2006 graduate from the School of Social Work, attended the fair to gather information.
"This is a good opportunity to meet with potential employers," Alday said.
Fair attendants had the chance to talk with representatives such as Patrick Wiley of Starlight Adolescent Center who sought students who graduated with a bachelor's degree in social work to counsel teens with emotional disorders.
"These opportunities provide on-hand experience, so while the pay is not so good, the experience is very valuable," Wiley said, who said he was at the fair networking with students to fill 10 positions.
Alum Rock Counseling Center program manager Amy Wright was stationed at the fair looking for students to fill positions in the Center's new internship program.
"We are looking for culturally aware students who want to help kids and want to learn more about the field," Wright said.
Among the 120 representatives at the fair, Lindsay Culp, regional recruiter for the Peace Corps, offered a different opportunity for students. The Peace Corps needs volunteers to spend 27 months in various countries around the world such as the Philippines where Culp volunteered.
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