York U. & Seneca Offer Companies Head-Start in Recruiting Business, IT Grads at 1st Annual Intern/Coop High-Tech Career Fair

TORONTO, January 19, 2000 -- Companies looking for a leg-up in the competition for university and college graduates skilled in business and information technology can start recruiting earlier now at the first annual career fair for interns and coop placement at York University.

The fair, Friday, January 21, is a collaboration between York University's Schulich School of Business, the Computer Science Department, and the School of Computer Studies at Seneca College. The Seneca@York Internship and Coop High-Tech Fair will help Canadian companies address the IT skills gap by bringing them into the hiring process earlier, as training grounds for future graduates.

"Getting and retaining skilled employees is the number-one issue in the high-tech industry today," said Zel Spillman, Internship Officer at the Schulich School of Business, noting that the demand for workers has made staffing raids commonplace. "Early recruitment will help companies keep valuable employees," said Spillman.

Among the participants at the fair are Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce, Royal Bank of Canada, and global financial consultants KPMG. "Companies are dealing with a very tight market right now for IT-skilled employees and the early access provided by a fair of this type gives us a good idea of what's out there," said Paul Syms, Royal Bank's Manager of Campus Recruitment Strategy.

As the Conference Board of Canada has pointed out:

"Successful companies realize they must invest early in the science, math and technology education of students. One benefit is student awareness of careers in technology and innovation -- where demand exceeds supply. Later benefits include increased employee morale and higher retention rates, since employees see the employer's commitment to science, technology, research and youth."

"This new approach to recruiting and York's unique partnership with Seneca College will give companies access to intern and coop students at both college and university, in IT and Business," said Kathy Martin, Internship Program Manager for the Computer Science Department at York. "We believe this will not only secure jobs for our students, but help companies nurture a more committed workforce," said Martin.

The fair will take place in the gymnasium at Seneca@York, on Friday, January 21, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. The Seneca College campus at York University, 4700 Keele St., is the newest, most technologically advanced post-secondary institution in Ontario.

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For further information, please contact:

Tracey Burroughs
Coop Employment Advisor
School of Computer Studies
Seneca College
(416) 491-5050, ext. 3083

Kathy Martin
Internship Program Mgr.
Computer Science Dept.
York University
(416) 736-2100, ext. 70162

Zel Spillman
Internship Coordinator
Schulich School of Business
York University
(416) 736-2100, ext. 20697

Susan Bigelow
Media Relations
York University
(416) 736-2100, ext. 22091
sbigelow@yorku.ca
YU/005/00