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Only a couple of days into the new school year and Michigan Tech is already hosting activities that remind students why they chose the University for their advanced education.
Thursday marked the fourth annual Automotive Day where students were able to meet with perspective employers in the industry and find out more about the demanding marketplace.
“Automotive Day is a great opportunity for us to bring employers here to campus to meet our students. Students get the opportunity to explore careers in the automotive industry and find out if that’s a good fit for them when they graduate. It’s a great chance for them to learn about internships, co-ops, and just start making connections within the industry,” said Jennifer Wall of Michigan Tech’s Career Services.
From Military vehicles, to go-karts, and sports cars, students spent the day making contacts with reps from a field that is always in need of engineers.
“Today we’ve got with us Ford, 3M, GM, Nexteer, there’s 11 different companies that have come to campus today just to name a few,” said Wall.
All of these companies invest heavily in the university through research resources and donations, and hire more Tech grads than any other industry.
“We’re here on Automotive Day because automotive is one of our biggest customer bases. We do have customers in basically any kind of industrial setting,” said Adam Manninen of Michigan Scientific, who is one of several companies to utilize the opportunity to showcase their innovative products and meet with the next generation of those who will be designing them.
While Adam’s company focuses on mechanical and electrical devises, other displays include the aesthetics of a vehicle, like a Mustang that Ford and 3M have combined their efforts to produce a racing stripe decal.
The event reminds students that there are many avenues that they can travel down in their career path and, often times, provides opportunities for the students.
Wall said, “Some students actually walk away from days like this with job interviews and some of them even summer internships.”
Thursday’s event focuses exclusively on automotive, but representatives and recruiters from the auto industry will be joined soon by other fields looking to recruit Tech grads and students during the upcoming Fall Career Fair. That event is scheduled for Wednesday, October 3rd.
