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Watch: Employers seek next generation of industry professionals at 2024 Careers Fair

Posted 13 November

An annual fair which brings employers from across the country to Harper Adams seeking the next generation of industry professionals has returned to campus.

The Careers and Placement Fair, alongside a dedicated Land and Property Careers and Placement Fair held in October, are highlights of the autumn term at the University for students seeking jobs and placements.

Over the two days, more than 200 different businesses and organisations have been represented on stalls at the institution – from JCB to Cranswick Foods, and from Natural England to Dyson Farming.

Students from across all course areas Harper Adams offer have been able to explore and discuss placement and graduate employment opportunities first hand. Many of the industry representatives attending are themselves alumni from the University, who are returning to discuss their career paths since graduation.

The success of previous careers fairs – and the students who attended - has seen Harper Adams gain an enviable reputation for preparing its graduates for employment. Student reviews have secured the University the WhatUni Award for Career Prospects    for eight successive years since 2016 – including the 2024 award this April.

The event also supports the University’s annual Graduate Outcomes results, which assess the progress of UK graduates 15 months after they complete their studies.  

In the figures overall, Harper ranked second among universities in the UK for the proportion of undergraduates in full time employment, and second in the UK for those in either full-time employment or further study, with a rate of 97.5 per cent of students studying undergraduate full – time courses responding as having secured employment or continuing to study.

Harper Adams Careers Service Manager Maria Simpson said: “Our annual Careers Fairs are always important events in our autumn calendar.

“They offer our current students the chance to discuss some of the fantastic opportunities in the food, land, business and farming sectors and also offer the companies who attend a great source of talented and committed employees.

"This can be seen in the number of our alumni who make the journey back to their former University as graduates, to talk to current students about placement and graduate opportunities within their company.

"That peer-to-peer interaction really does make a difference, and for me, and many other Harper Adams employees, it’s also great to see some familiar faces back again!

“As ever, I would like to thank everyone who made the day so special – all the employers, our staff, our alumni – and, of course, all those current students who attended.”

_{Catch up with some of the social media posts from the day in our blog roundup here.}