Engineering Internship Fair Puts A Spotlight On Lake County Career Opportunities

More than 160 students and nearly 30 Lake County businesses gathered today for the first annual Lake County Engineering Internship and Career Fair sponsored by Lake County Partners and the College of Lake County. Held at the College of Lake County, the event drew students interested in pursuing engineering careers from more than 13 colleges including the University of Illinois-Champaign, Iowa State University, Purdue University and the College of Lake County. Leading employers searching for industrial, mechanical, biomedical engineers and more were on hand to give students a chance to interview for careers in a variety of fields.

"With its high concentration of BioPharma, Health Care and Manufacturing businesses, Lake County offers students looking to start their careers a breadth of opportunities in engineering," said Kevin Considine, Managing Director of Lake County Partners. "Today gave students a chance to see the wide range of options available here in Lake County and the ability to interview with top employers that are looking to hire now."

"Internship experience is a must, so being able to meet with this many potential employers and explore the range of opportunities right here in Lake County was fantastic," said Kimberly Jacob, a Bioengineering major at the University of Illinois at Chicago.

Nathan Husemoller, a Mechanical Engineering major at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, echoed this statement and added "I am in the early stages of my college career, and after meeting with several companies today, I am confident that I can find a quality summer internship and learn more about future career paths."

"After speaking with companies here today, I was able to see that the skills I am building through the Engineering program are in line with local employers' needs," said Justin Badua, a Computer Engineering sophomore at the College of Lake County. "This event has given me the opportunity to learn more about the type of engineers that Lake County companies are looking for so that I can position myself for a future internship with a great company."

Businesses attending the fair were hoping to connect with students like Kimberly, Nathan, and Justin, with some companies looking to hire as many as 20 summer interns. Considine notes that this is just a small percentage of the total new engineers the county will need between now and 2020. "We anticipate nearly 150 new positions each year, and further opportunity driven by an aging workforce. Twenty-three percent of the engineers in Lake County are currently over 55, and so there is a gap that needs to be filled by emerging talent."

MAT Holdings, located in Long Grove, sees events such as today's career fair as critical in meeting that demand. "Our internship program is a key tool in our talent development program," said Ben Friedel, Corporate Recruiter for MAT Holdings. "We are fortunate to be in an area that is producing so much talent and to have the opportunity to meet with students here in our own backyard that have the skills we need. Our interns often go on to work for us full-time and become some of our best employees."

Robyn Safron, Human Resources Manager of Hydraforce Inc., agrees that the fair was a success. "We were able to use today to build awareness of what we do and what a career at Hydraforce could offer. While many students are familiar with the largest companies in the region, they aren't always familiar with mid-size companies like ours, the innovative work we are doing and the opportunities we can provide."

"We are excited to bring employers and job seekers together through events such as today's career fair," said Considine. "This is a great example of our Workforce Ecosystem in action and it illustrates how we are working together with the College of Lake County, the Lake County Workforce Development Department, local municipalities, school systems and local businesses to ensure that we have the talent pipeline in place for tomorrow as demand for technical skills continues to rise in our region."

Lake County businesses participating in today's career fair included Aerotek Staffing, All American Exterior Solutions, Bertsche Engineering Corporation, BRP US, Inc., College of Lake County, ComEd, Federal-Mogul Motorparts, Flex International, Gewalt Hamilton Associates, Handi Ramp, Inc., HN Precision, HydraForce, Inc., Jessup Manufacturing Company, JST Corporation, Konrad Construction, Mad Dash, MAT Holdings, Inc., MBX Systems, Midmark, Nosco, PEER Bearing Company, Profile Plastics Corporation, Progressive Components International Corporation, Stoddard Silencers, Inc., Sysmex America, Inc., TVH Americas, and United Conveyor Corporation.