The Tribune

STUDENTS at the College of The Bahamas (COB) have the opportunity to meet leading professionals in a diverse range of careers at the Career Symposium and Job Fair next week.

While the Job Fair, on September 18, is an annual event at the College’s Oakes Field campus, the Counselling and Health Services Department is planning to double the interaction that students will have with respected entrepreneurs, media professionals, attorneys, architects, business leaders and many more professionals by adding the Career Symposium, to be held on September 16.

“We want to afford students the opportunity to gain first-hand information on career options that are closely aligned with their fields of study,” explained Norma Turnquest, Career and Placement Counsellor and Co-ordinator of the Job Placement Advisory Committee.

“As such, panellists have been selected to represent the major disciplines within the College: tourism, business and financial services, liberal and fine arts, pure and applied sciences and social and educational sciences.”

The Job Fair will be held at its traditional location in Independence Park. It will feature various exhibit booths profiling career options and will allow employers with job openings to make direct contact with college students.

The Career Symposium will be held at the Performing Arts Centre from 10am to 3pm. Two separate panels will feature professionals like Ryan Pinder, Minister of Financial Services; Jerome Sawyer, Senior Manager, Public Relations BTC, and Atario Mitchell, President and CEO, Bahamas Striping Group of Companies.

Others include Ed Fields, Vice President, Retail Services and Public Affairs, Atlantis; Jeffrey Lloyd, attorney-at-law and talk show host; Charley Sealey, Vice President, Doctor’s Hospital; Romauld Ferreira, environmental attorney; Keshelle Kerr, author and entrepreneur; Dirk Saunders, architect, and Latonia Symonette, President of The Bayshore Group LLC.

The main objective of the symposium is to highlight career opportunities and some of the issues facing students as they prepare for the job market in the Bahamas and abroad.

“In the final analysis, I hope that students will use both forums as a means of exploring new careers or solidify a career already chosen, said Ms Turnquest. “It can even provide the opportunity for them to forge a network of contacts for future mentorship and or employment.”

These opportunities are not the only ones afforded to companies and entrepreneurs who want to recruit College students. Through the Counselling and Health Services Department, employers can also advertise them via a recruitment website www.bahamas-csm.symplicity.com presently sponsored by BTC.