Creating opportunities to find a suitable career

Derek Favret, manufacturing engineering supervisor at RBC Bearings, was giving students gathered at his booth at the Career Development Center’s fall career fair an insight into the company’s hiring process when he suddenly had a question for them.

“At RBC, our main goal is to find you a job that’s right for you,” Favret explained. “While we care about your existing skills, what we’re most interested in is what you really want to do. Why do you think I would say that?” he asked her.

“Is it because people get inspired when they do work they are passionate about?” answered Loydon Henry-Phillip (year 26), a mechanical engineering student.

“I couldn’t have said it better,” Favret replied.

Favret was one of more than 100 employers participating in the Career Development Center’s two-day fall career fair, which drew hundreds of students to the Beckerman Recreation Center. Students were looking for full-time jobs or internships and the opportunity to network with employers and recruiters.

Favret said he enjoys attending fairs at the University of New Haven because the students RBC recruits “have good communication skills and are hardworking. The faculty and staff know what employers need, and they do a great job of giving them hands-on experience so they’re well prepared.”

Henry-Phillip said he initially found the prospect of speaking to employers “really nerve-racking.” But within half an hour of arriving, he had already spoken to three different recruiters about internship opportunities, asked lots of questions and handed out his resume. “They were all warm and encouraging,” he said.

“I see myself in them”

The students were eager to speak with representatives from companies such as Amuse Technologies, General Dynamics Electric Boat, M&T Bank, Liberty Mutual Insurance, Spire Orthopedic Partners, the City of New Haven, the U.S. Border Patrol, Coastal Connecticut Counseling and IRS Criminal Investigation.

Also attending the fair were representatives from nine local police departments, the Connecticut and New York State Police, the U.S. Capitol Police and the FBI, as well as Catalyst CT, Columbia Dental, Hartford HealthCare and Nuvance Health.

At the Eversource Energy booth, Andrea Atkinson-Downer (2008 graduate, 2014 MBA), a senior engineer, informed students that the company—which serves four million electric, gas, and water customers in Connecticut, Massachusetts, and New Hampshire and employs 10,000 people—is “hiring in EVERY area!” she emphasized.

She asked students to scan the QR code at her booth while human resources representatives waited to answer questions. She urged them to create profiles on the company’s website, apply for internships or full-time positions, and constantly update their profiles, because that’s how she got her job there. “The company has been watching me,” she said. “Don’t miss an opportunity.”

Atkinson-Downer said she always wants to take away students’ fears when they approach her to present their resume or ask questions. “I see myself in them,” she said. “I remember coming to the career fair here as a student and not being sure what I wanted to do next.”

“Eversource loves coming here because we know that the University of New Haven produces great talent,” Atkinson-Downer continued. “We have a strong connection with this university.”

“Really prepared”

Matt Caporale, MA, executive director of the Career Development Center, called the employers “true partners who play a critical role in helping the university achieve its goals of positive career prospects for our students.”

Taylor Darville ’21 MS and Sai Pujitha Karanam ’20 MS, assistant project managers, were part of a team representing the Cumming Group of Westport, a project management services firm. Both said they were glad to attend the event because the university has had such a big impact on their careers.

Both studied civil engineering at university. They did not know each other during their master’s studies, but now they work as colleagues on projects of the Cumming Group with Yale University. Karanam spoke to students about the great diversity of their work.

Darville said he draws on what he learned as a student at the Tagliatela College of Engineering in his work, adding that the university also helped shape his work ethic and professionalism.

“I can attribute a lot of that to the university and one professor in particular, our advisor Dr. Byungik Chang. You think he’s tough, but then you go out into the world and you realize that he and the university have prepared you really well. If you get through it, you can work with us.”

“They ask questions and have great resumes that are concise and informative.”Taylor Darville ’21 MS

Darville said he was impressed with the students he spoke to at the fair. “They ask questions and have great resumes that are concise and informative.”

Megan Moriarty (graduated 2012, 2014, MBA), assurance manager at Marcum LLP, said the University of New Haven students the firm has hired are dedicated and hardworking team players. She said she looks forward to speaking with the students about Marcum and the opportunities that a career in accounting and finance can bring.

“I’ve been at Marcum since I graduated from college,” she said. “I love my job, the people I work with, the flexibility of the hours and the opportunity to travel. We’re excited to find that connection and find the students who might be a fit next.”