What do an Irish pub, an art museum, and a center for science and the performing arts all have in common? Not too much without getting really creative - unless you’re speaking about an innovative job and internship fair called Experience Harrisburg. In that case you’d know that Molly Brannigans, the Susquehanna Art Museum, and the Whitaker Center for Science and the Arts have all agreed to host employers for the 7th annual downtown job and internship fair. In addition to these venues, Stock’s on 2nd and the Downtown Visitors Center have also agreed to participate as job fair destinations. These locations along with 4 others still yet to be decided will house four or five employers each and provide small groups of students the opportunity to experience first hand some of the great entertainment, food, and nightlife that Harrisburg has to offer while networking with employers for potential jobs and internships. Suggestions for the remaining four locations are welcome, although I do have a few places already in mind that we’ve used in previous years along with a few new destinations. Don’t forget to mark your calendar for Thursday, October 23rd from 5:30pm to 9:30pm to take part in the event and experience all the participating locations for yourself!

Experience Harrisburg, the annual job and internship fair that takes place at multiple downtown venues is officially on the calendar for the evening of October 23rd, 2008. The fair is going into it’s 7th year of existence, and naturally this year will be the best to date! I can say that because I’m planning the job fair myself, and since taking over the event for the first time last year I’m already looking forward to making it even bigger than the last time around.  While the event does pose a number of logistical challenges to pull off, I really enjoy coordinating some 300 students from over two dozen random colleges around 9 different downtown venues. The event not only provides a large number of students their first encounter with the city of Harrisburg, but also allows them the opportunity to network with some 40 employers from the region for potential jobs and internships. Of course the event is a real win-win for the city of Harrisburg, but it also makes a usually dull and mindless obligation - the job fair - into something altogether enjoyable. Participants get to check out 9 different venues downtown, try food from a number of restaurants throughout the night, and finish the evening at Dragonfly Nightclub with free pizza and huge prize giveaways. Now that’s a job fair! At any rate, more to come in the near future, but the event website has been updated and the date finalized - mark your calendars!