Hundreds of southern Alberta high school students packed Exhibition Park in Lethbridge on Wednesday for a career fair offering career pathways in trades, health, agriculture and STEM.
The event, hosted by Career Transitions, featured a wide range of employer exhibitors offering hands-on learning opportunities in a variety of possible occupations.
Career Transitions executive director, Judy Stolk-Ingram, said the career fair is the biggest day of the year for the non-profit organization, devoted to helping students explore life after grade 12.
“Any student who’s ever been asked, ‘what are you going to be when you grow up?’ would probably want to attend this event,” she said. “It’s about creating those pathways, figuring out what is next. There are so many options out there for students I think it can sometimes be a bit overwhelming.”
Grade 11 student Tyler Yagos gravitated towards the engineering and chemistry booths, though he’s not ready to settle on one field just yet, saying he attended the fair to learn more about what’s out there.
“There’s probably more kids like me out there that don’t really know what they’re going to do in their life,” he said.
Mikala Carson from Lethbridge College taught 15-minute sessions at the graphic design booth and enjoyed the fruits of her labour.
“I kind of see… the light bulbs turn on when they realize how to do things,” Carson said.
Organizers hope to give students the tools necessary to make informed career and post-secondary decisions.