Job Fair to bring Lao students, businesses together
Job Fair to bring Lao students, businesses together
Laos' 4th Job Fair will be held next month at NUOL's Faculty of Engineering in Sisattanak district, Vientiane, after the first three fairs were estimated to be a great success.
The Faculty, together with the European Chamber of Commerce and Industry in Laos (ECCIL) and the Lao National Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LNCCI) are organising the Job Fair, which will take place on May 28, an ECCIL official said recently.
The fairs held in 2012 and 2013 attracted 500 to 700 visitors, while about 1,500 students attended the Job Fair in 2014. This was an increase of about 100 percent and was proof of the event's value, an ECCIL handout noted.
The main purpose of the fair is to establish contacts between students and the business community. Participating companies and organisations will be given space to set up a booth to advertise their products and services and establish contacts with academic institutions in general and prospective employees in particular.
It will expose students to a variety of job opportunities and put them in direct contact with potential employers.
“The Job Fair will have 32 booths and we are open for booking now,” the ECCIL official said.
The cost of an exhibition booth is 1 million kip for members of ECCIL and LNCCI, 1.5 million kip for non-members, and 300,000 kip for state schools.
The Job Fair was initiated in 2012 by two CIM Integrated Experts. The Centre for International Migration and Development (CIM) is the human resources placement organisation for the German Development Cooperation.
Some 5,000 students are enrolled at 10 different departments of the Faculty of Engineering and each year about 1,300 of them graduate at the end of June.
Although the fair initially targeted these graduates, students in general are invited, from vocational schools as well as upper secondary schools. The aim is not only to encourage them to draw up career plans and to get informed about diverse education and training options (both vocational and academic) but also to help them to obtain internships.
All students have the chance to learn about educational opportunities abroad and how they can apply for scholarships from a broad range of organisations.
Besides giving potential employers the opportunity to publicise the nature of their work, the organisers put a lot of emphasis on further attractions, such as workshops to train students how to behave appropriately during a job interview.
Panel discussions with human resource representatives on how to be best prepared for challenging job opportunities drew a lot of attention from students, who were eager to hear first-hand experience and recommendations.
By all measures the Job Fair has been a success. Committed to success, the organisers hope that this year they can again welcome many interested visitors and committed companies.
