Last Wednesday, the Career Centre organized the annual Graduate and Professional Schools Fair for all UTM students and recent graduates. The fair was held at the RAWC from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. and 1060 students attended.
The A/B gym was filled with large booths, pamphlet-filled tables, and free goodies.
“This fair gives all students a chance to speak to different university representatives. Any student who is coming in having done research, can ask about information not available on websites and any other questions,” said Anne Gaiger, Assistant Director, Employer Relations and Marketing at the Career Centre. “Others get a wide cross-section, at one place, to explore.”
The fair had over one hundred universities and colleges attending, including Harvard University, McGill University, McMaster University, and the University of Southern California.
The fair gave students access to a myriad of academic fields like Law, Medicine, Psychology, and Business.
Although the majority of the booths housed fields of interest relating to medicine and healthcare, some not-so-mainstream fields like Occupational Therapy, Landscape Design, and Forestry were also present.
Attending the fair “gives students a chance to form a personal connection with someone from the university they are interested in,” Gaiger told The Medium. “They can also get to know specifics and requirements that may not be mentioned online.”
“Ryerson University has launched its own Law program and U of T an Occupational Therapy program—they have booths here and not a lot of students know of them.”
Rodrick, a fourth-year DEM specialist student, attended the fair to know more about opportunities in his field.
“This is very well organized. I can easily navigate my way and spot the booths I want to see. I had a particular aim when I came here, and I could get my information easily,” Rodrick told The Medium.
Aman Nadkarni, a third-year finance specialist student, felt that economics and finance were underrepresented, however the available booths were very informative.
“I think doing both online research and visiting fairs like this is very important. It is an investment, an investment in your future and you want to be sure that you have all the right information. This fair is good for that,” Rodrick added.
A representative from the University of Guelph for the Graduate & Postdoctoral Studies was in awe of the attendance and students’ initiative.
“This is my first time attending this fair and I am very impressed with the student turn-out and how well this fair has been organized. The students who I have spoken with are well researched—they know what they want and what questions they want to ask,” said the representative to The Medium.
The Career Centre organizes three fairs in the academic year: the Get Experience Fair at the beginning of the year, followed by the Graduate and Professional Schools Fair and the Get-Hired Fair in December.
