Students, alumni connect at Company Days
Thursday, September 22, 2016 2:00 AM
News
Pittsburg, KS
As Brittney Feuerborn spoke with Pitt State students at the 2016 College of Technology Company Days, the whole experience felt a bit surreal.
“It’s a little mind-blowing, to be completely honest,” she said. “It was just last year that I was here walking around talking to companies. I never would have imagined I’d be on this side of the table so soon after graduation.”
Feuerborn, who graduated from Pitt State’s Graphics and Imaging Technologies program in May, was representing Pittsburg’s Limelight Marketing at Company Days, which took place Sept. 20 and 21. Feuerborn is a graphic artist at Limelight.
More than 200 companies participated in this year’s Company Days event, which gives students the opportunity to network with professionals from across the country. Companies in attendance this year included national brands such as NIKE, CarMax, Caterpillar and Sherwin Williams.
The event also featured local companies such as Crossland Construction, Miller’s Professional Imaging and Kendall Packaging.
For the students, Company Days is a rare opportunity to have hundreds of potential employers all together in one place.
“It’s pretty unique to have something like this at your school,” said Ryan Urban, a communication major with a minor in graphic design. “Not every university will take the time to host something like this for the students. It’s an amazing opportunity for all of us.”
Freshman Timothe’us Boyd, a construction management major from Kansas City, Kan., said he was “very impressed” with his first Company Days experience.
“It’s pretty exciting to see all of these companies here,” he said. “You learn about them, but you also learn more about your major. Pitt State really cares about its students and works hard to get them into the jobs they want. That shows at an event like this.”
For the many alumni who now represent their employers at Company Days, returning to the event is a reminder of its importance.
“Company Day was a huge help for me,” said Katie George, integrated marketing manager for Boelte-Hall in Roeland Park. “Just getting to meet people in the industry and asking questions is invaluable.”
George, who represented Boelte-Hall at Company Days, said the day doesn’t come without some nerves.
“I was nervous as a student, and I’m still nervous today on this side of it,” she said. “But that is why you do this. You’re nervous because you have so many questions, but having the chance to get answers and information from so many different companies makes you feel so much better.”
Bethany Cook, a senior GIT major, said being nervous is a good thing.
“Going through something like Company Days is definitely out of my comfort zone,” she said, “but that’s where I need to be. You know this is all happening because Pitt State truly cares about the students and wants them to succeed well after graduation.”
The best part, Cook said, is finding out how many of the employers at Company Days are Pitt State grads
“Talking to alumni and hearing how much they love PSU is wonderful,” she said. “It’s great to hear their stories about past Company Day events and how they got from there to where they are today. It’s definitely inspiring.”
For more information, visit http://www.pittstate.edu/college/technology/company-day.