Colorado School of Mines hosts more than 400 companies looking to hire students

A softening labor market is raising concerns for college students who will soon be looking for a job. But on the Colorado School of Mines campus in Golden, companies are practically fighting over future employees.

Over 400 companies have set up booths for the School of Mines annual career fair. Many graduating seniors are hoping to be hired for a full-time job, while younger students have the potential to get internships or learn about different companies.

School of Mines senior Maddy Hoffman, who studied engineering physics and material science, came prepared with her resume.

“I’m prepared to talk to a bunch of different companies and use my networking skills and use the soft skills that I've learned here,” Hoffman said.

Recruiters like Shea Zeman from Freeport McMoRan agreed “soft skills” like communication and interview skills are important.

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“There are companies that do next-day interviews. They'll take your resume if they think you're qualified. They're going to want to talk to you,” Zeman said.

Sophomore petroleum engineering major Coy Bowser got an internship through the career fair last year and said it’s often more competitive for the companies than for the students.

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“They offer more jobs than students, and that was a huge thing for me — job security after college,” Bowser said.

Colorado School of Mines hosts the career fair twice a year — in the spring and fall. A study by Payscale shows Colorado School of Mines graduates with a bachelor’s degree alone have the second highest mid-career salaries of any Colorado college or university graduate, second only to the Air Force Academy graduates.

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