MTSU business majors will have a special opportunity to look sharp and showcase themselves for prospective employers during an upcoming career fair on campus.

Sponsored by faculty in the Department of Management and Marketing in the Jones College of Business, the Business Exchange for Student Talent, also known as BEST, will host a “speed networking” career event from 1 to 4 p.m. Wednesday, April 15, in the Student Union Ballroom. (Watch a video from the 2014 event below:)

Close to 40 employers will be on hand from a wide variety of industries, ranging from AFLAC to The Hershey Co. and from Waffle House to Waste Management. Full-time positions and internships in the fields of marketing, management and sales will be available.

The event is structured as “speed networking,” meaning employers will speak with a small group of students every 15 minutes. A bell will ring and students will then move to a different table with another employer.

“It isn’t your typical career fair,” said Jean Wilson, an instructor and coordinator of career planning in the Department of Management and Marketing. “It is geared toward business students — management and marketing and business administration.

“Students will choose the employers they want to go to. The employer will start by selling his or her company and the different opportunities that they have, then the students will take turns selling themselves, sharing their resumes and talking about what they have skill wise.”

Wilson urged students to research the companies beforehand, dress professionally and bring their resumes. No registration is required.

Wilson said students like the event because they know the employers attending have real positions available, while employers like the format because it maximizes their time by providing a pool of candidates with the desired skill sets they seek.

For more information about the event, visit http://www.mtsu.edu/career/best.php.

— Jimmy Hart (jimmy.hart@mtsu.edu)