On Tuesday afternoon, April 23, FUSD held its inaugural Career & Internship Fair for high school students in Centerville Middle School’s gym. Hundreds of students from across the district showed up from 4 to 7 p.m. to find job and internship opportunities with the 27 businesses and organizations present at the event. Employers at the job fair represented medical, retail, financial, public, and other sectors.

Besides the employment opportunities available at the fair, the fair’s organizers held raffle drawings to keep up the energy. Washington High School’s jazz band provided a comfortable backing track to the job-seekers and employers. Outside, several food trucks provided refreshments for job-seekers.

Ms. Burns, Washington High School’s Career and Technical Education teacher, started planning the week after winter break. 

“By offering the fair out of a middle school,” she explained, “it spreads the word that the fair is open to the entire district. If it were posted at my high school, it would seem as if it was not inclusive of all of the schools.”

One business owner present was Trisha Sparling, representing Jack’s Brewing Company at the Fremont Hub. Though she was hiring people above 18 years old willing to get credentials for working in the restaurant industry, her main goal was to advertise her business.

“People have offered to do marketing and powerwashing for me,” Sparling said, pointing at a notebook with the contact information of several student-owned businesses. Sparling also told students about performance opportunities at her establishment’s Tuesday open mic nights.

Despite the high turnout, most students were unable to find jobs that they were eligible for. Although there was someone at the event ready to approve work permits, barely any were approved. Sophomores and juniors under 18 years old were often sidelined by most employers present at the fair. This led to some frustration amongst the students in attendance who were told that some employers will interview and hire on site. 

“The City of Fremont has a lot of good offers, and it’s the only one I found that offers jobs for underclassmen,” explained Eric Bao (10). 

Some seniors who did meet the age requirement were similarly unable to find fitting jobs. 

“Most of these are full-time positions,” explained Ben Kuang (12), “which don’t make sense for me since I’m going to college. If you’re not going to college or just want to go straight into the workforce, you’d find a lot of jobs, though.”

Ms. Burns acknowledged students’ frustrations, but did point out that there were a few employers at the fair hiring work-permit–aged students.

“For people under 18,” she explained, “the purpose of the job fair would be for the student to gather information and see what qualifications the employer is looking for. And then maybe the students will choose courses that fit their ideal career paths.”

Despite the unmet expectations of many students, the Career and Internship Fair was a good opportunity to find out about local businesses.