<p>I am an incoming Freshman. I want to find out about summer internships for next summer. However, I don't want to do the co-op in my first year. Where do I go on GT campus to find out about it?</p>
<p>During both the spring and fall semesters there are career fairs. You may find, however, that after waiting in line for 30 minutes, many of the recruiters will simply shake your hand, give you their card, and refer you to their website for more information. What is far more worthwhile is doing a search on P2D2 which is run through the Division of Professional Practice and is a database of employment opportunities. There is another one called CareerBuzz that accomplishes something similar. Finally, find out what engineering firms have offices in your area and apply to them directly. Also, understand that after your first year, you really won’t have learned any engineering and you will largely be doing grunt work.</p>
<p>Unless you’re looking for a small company, I agree about not going to the career fair. For big companies, I have gotten all of my interest via online applications. I haven’t seen any job postings in my field on P2D2, so I can’t comment on that.</p>
<p>How do I access P2D2 and CareerBuzz? Can the Co-op office give any relevant info? Where do I look for info about the career fair on the GT website?</p>
<p>Career Fair website: [Georgia</a> Institute of Technology :: Career Fair](<a href=“http://www.career.gatech.edu/careerfair/]Georgia”>http://www.career.gatech.edu/careerfair/)</p>
<p>The Career Services is for Co-op and Interns, so feel free to use their services liberally.</p>
<p>The best advice I can give is to start searching in September (a few weeks after you reach campus). Most companies hire in October/November for the following summer. Spring recruiting is much smaller than Fall recruiting. </p>
<p>Companies will interview and hire you without a GT GPA as long as you indicate (1) your interest in your major, (2) that you were a successful student in high school and will probably be one in college, and (3) your willingness to return in subsequent summers if you have a good experience.</p>
<p>You shouldn’t have to look to external sources (company websites, Linkedin, Monster) unless you have a particular interest in a particular company. Career Services should be all you need to find a job if you’re even reasonably well qualified. </p>
<p>I strongly disagree about the Career Fair. As a student you might think it’s useless, but many companies track “contact” and use that as a proxy for how interested you are in their company. Try to meet with a company every time they’re on campus (fairs, presentations, etc). Also, most companies will take high-value candidates to dinner after the career fair. That’s a very strong contact that usually directly leads to an interview.</p>
<p>Will the website post a list of the companies participating in the Career Fair so I can look up if they offer internships in my city?</p>
<p>Don’t limit yourself to one city. Your internship sets up your 40 year career. There’s no need to throw that away because you want to save a few bucks spending the summer at your parents’ house.</p>