The Epic Job Expo, which will be hosted by the University of Cape Town's (UCT) Careers Service this week, is the perfect opportunity for students to speak to potential employers, fine-tune their curriculum vitae (CV) and listen to inspiring TED-style talks.
The expo is said to be largest careers festival for students hosted by any South African university. It takes place on Wednesday, 7 August from 9am-4pm at the UCT Sports Centre.
For one day only, students from all faculties will be able to find out about internships and graduate programme opportunities, as well as engage with companies to get a better understanding of what they’re looking for in candidates.
This is the second year that the Careers Service is running the expo, having hosted smaller, industry-themed events in the past. The first Epic Job Expo, in 2018, combined 10 smaller expos and featured 100 companies. The Careers Service has won the SAGEA (South African Graduate Employers Association) Award for the Best Career Fair/Expo eight times in the past nine years.
Among the exhibitors at this yearʼs event are the Auditor-General South Africa, Bain & Company, FirstRand, Huawei, Investec Asset Management, McKinsey & Company, Oasis, PSG, the Small Enterprise Foundation, Truworths and the Vega School.
Students can bring along their CVs (in hard copy or digital format) to the all-day CV Lab, where Careers Service experts will share their knowledge and help with CV makeovers. The lab operates on a first-come, first-served basis, so students are encouraged to arrive early and come prepared.
The Careers Service team will also be on hand at their own expo stand to give advice, and employment opportunities from the various festival participants will be on display. Students are urged to pick up a copy of the 2019 Careers Service Guide – which features 99 companies, their opportunities and useful articles about the world of work – at the expo.
Presentations hosted by industry leaders, in the format of TED-style talks, will be happening on the hour throughout the day.
Among the speakers are David Buckham, chief executive officer of Monocle Solutions, who will present on the topic “Power of the Humanities Degree”, and Dr Mark Nasila, chief analytics officer for consumer banking and chief risk office at FNB. Nasila will tackle the topic, “Technology and Artificial Intelligence”.
