Penn State Worthington Scranton students who attended this year's IST Forum take time to pose for a group photo outside of the IST Building at University Park.
DUNMORE, Pa. — More than 30 Penn State Worthington Scranton students majoring in Information Sciences and Technology (IST) recently traveled to Penn State's University Park campus for the annual IST Future Forum, hosted by the University’s College of IST.
This annual event provides students with a unique opportunity to explore career and internship opportunities, while giving employers exclusive access to Penn State’s impressive pool of talented students, including those from local campuses like Penn State Worthington Scranton.
This year’s event featured more than 40 companies from around the country. Students got to meet recruiters from these leading companies, which represented a wide range of industries; gain access to potential employers who are looking specifically to recruit students in the College of IST for internships, co-ops and full-time positions; and leverage numerous opportunities to network and jump-start their future careers.
According to Fred Aebli, IST instructor and program co-coordinator, three of the 33 students who attended were asked to return to University Park following the event for interviews.
Over the years, the IST graduates from our campus that attended this event and connected with these companies, often went on to work with them.
The remaining students, who were seeking internships, will be following up on leads they received from companies such as General Electric, General Motors, Lockheed Martin, Mars, Liberty Mutual and others, Aebli said.
The trip for Penn State Worthington Scranton students was made possible due to the Marcos Family Program Endowment in IST, which was established by Frank and Denise Marcos, whose son Michael, graduated from Worthington Scranton in 2010 with an IST degree.
This fund helps to enhance the academic and educational environment for students within the IST discipline by helping to fund support of the IST Scholars' Series and other visiting speakers; mentoring activities; special projects and programs; and faculty and student involvement.
Funds can also be used for joint undergraduate research, as some members of Worthington Scranton's IST faculty are involved in both IST and interdisciplinary research that involves undergraduate students; participation in, and attendance at conferences so students can travel to program conferences to share their research experiences and participate in conference activities; and the IST Future Forum; as well as corporate field trips.
The students, many of whom many had never been to State College, got a whirlwind tour of the campus, visiting Beaver Stadium, the Bryce Jordan Center, Old Main, the HUB, the Veteran's Memorial, the Nittany Lion Inn and the famous Nittany Lion Shrine.
