The Spring 2016 Career Fair on the Fox on Tuesday, March 1, presented an opportunity for UW Oshkosh students of all majors to network and learn more about careers available in their field of choice. Students met with potential employers, learned about educational opportunities to help advance their careers, distributed résumés and got professional headshots taken at the fair. Many UWO students feel the most important aspect of the Career Fair is the many networking opportunities it provides them. UWO student and business major Sam Pankow said the Career Fair is vitally important to business students looking to stand out and make an impression in a competitive field. “It’s all about building relationships and expanding your network,” Pankow said. “If you’re not here, who’s going to get to know you?” Students are not the only ones who consider the networking opportunities important to their futures. Barb Benish, an internship coordinator at UWO, said networking is currently the best way to get a job and the Career Fair is a great place to meet employers. “Not only will you get to meet people who have the ability to hire you, but the Career Fair also allows people to learn more about businesses they may be interested in working or interning at,” Benish said. Benish also said students should not be discouraged if their desired positions are not currently available. “While they might not be hiring for the position you want today, that doesn’t mean they won’t be hiring for that position in the near future,” Benish said. UWO business major Angela Shomler said she found a potential future employer at the Career Fair, despite not considering the company before the event. Although Shomler will wait until next year to start her first internship, she spoke to a company she hadn’t known much about prior to the Career Fair that suited her major perfectly. There were many employers present at the Career Fair looking to find skilled students to fill a variety of openings. Matt Kaufman, a representative of Oshkosh Corporation, said his business comes here “to find talented students” to fill the 75 internship opportunities available at Oshkosh Corp., and that UWO students often get hired there. “UW Oshkosh is my favorite campus to recruit at,” Kaufman said. “I may be slightly biased though, as I’m a Titan myself.” Matt Tolmie and Kevin Shaw represented Six Flags Great America at the Career Fair. They were attending their first Career Fair on the Fox, but said they know Six Flags has hired interns from UWO in the past. “We’re looking for quality candidates that are self-starters,” Tolmie said. “Working somewhere that handles thousands of people each day requires quick thinking.” Barb Pesich said her company, Roundy’s Supermarkets, was interested in finding good candidates at the Career Fair for their summer internships. “We’re also looking to fill full-time entry level positions,” Pesich said. “We have openings both in our home office in Milwaukee and at local stores.” Students that missed out won’t have to wait until next spring to attend a Career Fair, as the event will occur again in the fall on Oct. 5. .