The San Jacinto College South Campus Biology Department is hosting a “reverse career fair” on April 16 and 17, offering anatomy and physiology students an opportunity to learn more about their occupational interests.

San Jac and Beyond: Reverse Career Fair is a symposium where students present posters answering a series of questions pertaining to their professional field of interest. In contrast to traditional employment fairs where students approach prospective employers, this event lets field experts reach out to students to provide direction and guidance. The symposium takes place over two days to accommodate the 300-400 participating students.

Biology Professor Sharada Gollapudi, a lead organizer of the event, said the goal behind the fair is to have participants realistically evaluate their career expectations.

“I hope students ask themselves ‘what do I really want to be?’” she said. “Sometimes, they don’t get the right information, so they may be lost or not on the right path.”

This is the first time the reverse fair is taking place and because faculty want students to view it in a serious light, they are counting the submitted posters as an assignment grade.

“I don’t want the students to feel this is a waste of time,” she noted. “I want them to see the value this will bring to them.”

Moreover, Gollapudi said the primary reason for organizing the fair is to motivate students to map out their professional paths early in their collegiate careers.

“The sooner you know what you want to do, the better,” she noted. “It helps to plan.”

Fellow biology professor Aleshia Seaton agreed students should embark on career planning in advance of leaving San Jac and said she finds it “awesome” that presenting students will be able to interview knowledgeable professionals while forging connections with community leaders.

“Also, at the same time,” she added, “maybe they can really figure out if this is something that they would want to do.”

San Jac and Beyond: Reverse Career Fair takes place April 16 at 9:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. and April 17 from 9:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. in the atrium of the Science/Allied Health building (S1) on the South Campus.