STORY AND PHOTO BY JASON GREEN, STAFF WRITER
Cypress College hosted its sixth annual campus-wide Connect2Cypress ft. Majors2Careers event with hundreds of local high school and Cypress student participants.
Hundreds of local high school students arrived at the campus around 8:30 a.m. for an introduction to the campus and programs.
Connect2Cypress ft. Majors2Career kicked off around 11 a.m. booths were set up showcasing Cypress’ programs and divisions of study in the piazza along with several companies and organizations present for a mini internship fair.
Near the Cypress College Complex, there was a career section where students were guided to find a career or start exploring one via activities.
Some of the programs present included: (STEM)², the Pride Center, the Veterans Resource Center, the Puente and Legacy Program, the Financial Aid Office, Arise, Chargers Experience Program, the Life Program, Career Center, Disability Support Services, Cypress College Athletics, and the Health Center.
The organizations and companies present were: “Disney; Dreams for Schools; Break Through Tech AI at UCLA; North Star Mortuary Group; PSI Products; Bloom Behavioral Health; Synergy Homecare; Law Office of Wais Azami; Murphy, Murphy, Inc.; ChefAnn Foundation; Dreams for Schools; OCAPICA; Trinity Behavioral Health; Chamber of Music OC; Portview Preparatory; County of Orange; Big Brothers, Big Sisters of Orange; and United Way OC.”
The event was catered by two fast food restaurants, The Habit Burger Grill and Jimmy John’s, but students had to complete an activity sheet to receive food.
The line for free food spanned across the pond as the event went on.
In addition to the crowded food line, hundreds of the high school students were released at once at the start of the event, resulting in crowding between the program booths.
In the area where career activities were conducted, a rolling dice type game was put out. Depending on what number a student received, they would walk to an activity related to career planning.
A red carpet, serving as a pathway, displayed posters of interest themes on each side for students to learn about.
A board was also displayed for students to write down their career goals on a sticky note and place them on the board.
Anne-Marie Beck, a career counselor and coordinator for the Rising Scholar Program at Cypress, said, “I suggest that students look out for internships that might be of interest to them.”
Beck further suggested that students speak with professionals, go to the Career Planning Center, and take a Counseling 151 class.
Beck also explained Handshake, which has recently collaborated with Cypress. “Handshake is an online job board and internship board, and students can go on there to look for jobs or internships.”
Handshake also allows for students to look for local job fairs and gives them the opportunity to network.
Erika Herreres, a recruiter with Disney Casting Services, provided advice to students about how to prepare for interviews. She encouraged students to research the STAR method. The acronym stands for situation, task, action and result. The STAR method is used to help prepare the user with examples of possible interview questions.
“Preparing stories for your interview is going to help you be successful, whether it’s community service, field questions or guest service questions, or roles that are aligned with the roles that you are applying for,” Herreres expressed.
Associated Students President Arjun Ayyappan stated, “I love seeing people who are prospective Cypress College students, and I really hope they enjoyed their time here.”
Connect2Cypress ft. Majors2Careers was once again successful for Cypress College and provided students, faculty, and staff with many opportunities for learning.
