TSTC students, alumni meet prospective employers at Spring 2023 Industry Job Fair in Waco

(HUTTO, Texas) – Several students from Texas State Technical College’s East Williamson County campus attended the Spring 2023 Industry Job Fair on Tuesday, March 21, at TSTC’s Waco campus. 

The event was spread out across the Waco campus to include the Col. James T. Connally Aerospace Center, the Industrial Technology Center, and the Murray Watson Jr. Student Recreation Center. More than 200 companies were represented at the event, making it the largest jobs event the college has ever hosted. 

Some companies had been represented at the job fair before.

Daniel Dockery, an area service leader for GE HealthCare in Dallas, is a graduate of TSTC’s Biomedical Equipment Technology program. He and other company representatives were looking for students to potentially fill six apprenticeships in the Dallas-Fort Worth area. He said students with good troubleshooting skills acquired in many of TSTC’s technical programs would get their attention.

Dockery said what makes GE HealthCare a great company to work for are the camaraderie, job security and company leadership. 

Some companies were new to the event.

Opifex LLC, whose headquarters are in Buda, is a construction equipment rental company that was seeking Diesel Equipment Technology students who are good at problem-solving and troubleshooting. The company has about 50 employees.

“In Central Texas, it is hard to fill the positions,” said Nate Harshbarger, the company’s vice president of operations. “We do take great care on who we hire.”

Alabama-based Motion Industries is an industrial parts supplier for automotive, chemical products, fabricated metals and other industries. Jay Campbell, the company’s talent acquisition consultant, was looking for students with manufacturing and mechanical interests.

“We are looking for diversity and equity, and a robust skill set,” he said.

Students lingered at company tables, talking to representatives while also picking up the occasional pieces of candy or branded stress toys and brochures.

Jacob Johnson, of Pflugerville, is studying Culinary Arts at TSTC’s East Williamson County campus. He talked to representatives of the Austin Fire Department, Magnolia, and the U.S. Border Patrol during the event.

“I think it is crazy with all this many people,” he said. “All these tables are filled, and they are here to hire, which is amazing.”

Jonathan Garcia, of Austin, is scheduled to graduate in May from the HVAC Technology program. He has attended past industry events in Waco and said he leaves impressed every time.

“I am close to graduating, so I thought it would be the best time to come to the job fair,” he said. “I have some job offers already, but I wanted to see what other opportunities there are.”

TSTC plans to have another Industry Job Fair in fall 2023 in Waco.

For more information on TSTC, go to tstc.edu.