This year's EdCon features 25 career fair attendees from urban, rural, remote and international organizations.
EdCon 2105 features new opportunities and a fresh take
Keynote speaker is Gerald Farthing, deputy education minister
If you’re an Education student planning to attend EdCon 2015 this year, you can expect something a little different, say organizers.
For one, the name of the Feb. 17-18 event, which is an opportunity to network and learn about employment opportunities in the field of education, has changed from EdExpo to EdCon, says Reid Bouvier, one of the co-organizers.
The new name (Education Conference) reflects its revised format, which provides employers the opportunity to choose which students they would like to interview and also includes a variety of speakers, discussion panels and a career fair.
“EdCon has been restructured in hopes of giving the entire experience a fresh look. This year as coordinators, we will not be organizing the interview process for students. Rather, employers will contact the students (teacher candidates) and set up the interviews,” says Bouvier of the event, which takes place in the Education building during the Tuesday and Wednesday of Reading Week.
“As far as the interview process, we are hoping that by leaving it in the hands of the employers, each interview will be more meaningful and more catered to each individual teacher candidate.”
The Education Student Council, which runs the event, has also secured Gerald Farthing, the deputy minister of education for Manitoba, as the keynote speaker on Feb. 17.
Bouvier is hopeful that Farthing will “share his own knowledge and experiences within the education system as well as inspire teacher candidates who are looking forward to their future careers.” And perhaps also provide some insight into the current employment climate for teachers, he adds.
On Feb. 17, there will be four discussion panels featuring those working in the field of education, says co-organizer Alex Kozub. The panels include teachers in administrative roles, those with B.Eds. working outside of the classroom, teachers nearing retirement and new teachers.
The career fair, which follows the discussion panels, will provide employers a chance to set up booths and mingle with teacher candidates. “This will give hiring agencies a chance to meet teacher candidates who may be interested in applying with them as they will not be taking part in the interview process,” says Kozub.
The employers attending are a good mix, Bouvier says, of rural, urban, remote and international. “The hope is that this year will be more informative and more meaningful than in years’ past.”
And, interest has so far been high, Kozub says, with 50 teacher candidates registering, along with 25 schools, divisions and agencies.
The Faculty is supportive of the change in format. “I’m excited about this new opportunity [the students are taking] to do something differently,” says Jerome Cranston, the Faculty of Education’s associate dean, undergraduate, discussing the new format of this year’s event.
“I’m very thankful to the Education Student Council for taking this on.”