The South Carolina State Government is holding a career fair at USC where more than 30 agencies hope to recruit students for open positions for full-time jobs and internships.
According to Karen Wingo, director of State Human Resources, there are currently more than 1,600 open positions with the state of South Carolina on careers.sc.gov.
“Recruiting and retaining top talent is critical to accomplish the missions of all state agencies. Therefore, it is critical for South Carolina to increase the pipelines of qualified applicants to state government.” Wingo says. “Connecting students to internships and career opportunities in the state is essential to achieve this goal.
Ashley Byrd-White, director of experiential learning for the College of Arts and Sciences, launched the first annual South Carolina State Agency Industry Day to help address the gap in recruitment of young and entry-level workers for state government jobs.
“I look at it as building the pipeline for these careers,” Byrd-White says. “By getting students involved early, whether through internships or full-time jobs, they can build experience and emerge as tomorrow’s leaders in state government.”
While preparing for the event, Byrd-White has met with state agencies to share what USC students have to offer in these roles.
“College of Arts and Sciences students want to give back to their community and make a difference, and state government is an ideal place to do that,” Byrd-White says. “Our students have so much to offer, from excellent communication and writing skills to the ability to empathize with the people they serve.”
Wingo says the career fair offers the chance for students to “learn about the diverse career opportunities with the state and the benefits of a career in the public sector.”
“Within state government, we offer careers from archeologists and biologists to registered nurses and statisticians, and everything in between,” she says.
South Carolina State Agency Industry Day will be held Wednesday, March 27, from 1:30 to 4 p.m. in the Russell House Ballroom.
The event is open to USC students at all levels.
Pre-registration is requested but not required.
Need to know for attendees
Any USC student is welcome to attend the event to network and learn about available jobs in state government. Byrd-White says students with a range of interests can find a job or internship with a state agency, where their passions can be put to good work.
The 30+ agencies attending the event include:
- The Attorney General’s Office
- Department of Commerce & Department of Revenue
- Department of Health and Human Services
- Department to Natural Resources
- Department of Parks, Recreation and Tourism
- Department of Public Safety Headquarters
- Department of Social Services
- Department of Health and Environmental Control
- SC Educational Television
Dressing as though for a job interview is recommended but not required. Attendees may share their resumes in hard copy and/or digital format.
Students can utilize resources on campus to prepare for this opportunity:
- USC Career Center can help with resumes, cover letters, networking preparation.
- Thomas Cooper Library, Level 5, Mon-Fri, 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
- Gamecock CommUnity Shop can help provide professional clothing.
- Carolina Coliseum, Suite 400, Mon-Fri, 8 a.m. to 6 p.m.
The College of Arts and Sciences organized the career fair in collaboration with USC’s Career Center and thanks to a grant from the Center for Integrative and Experiential Learning, which will support the event this year and in 2025.
Immediately preceding the career fair, faculty and staff from various departments will meet with key state government stakeholders for a networking luncheon, sponsored by South Carolina State Human Resources.
For more information, contact Ashley Byrd-White.
List image credit: Darwinek under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported license.