UIS hosts 3rd annual Graduate and Professional School Fair

The University of Illinois Springfield Career Development Center hosted the 3rd annual Graduate and Professional School Fair on September 21, 2010.

The event brought 28 graduate and professional school programs from UIS, Illinois and the Midwest to campus. The purpose of the event was to introduce UIS students, alumni and community members to the available graduate and doctoral programs.

“I attended a seminar online about grad school, but it’s better to meet with people one-on-one and kind of get more information,” said De’Anna Winters, a senior communication major.

But for the thousands of UIS students who take classes exclusively online, meeting face-to-face can be a challenge. That’s why the Career Development Center offered a virtual option to those who couldn’t make it to the fair, but wanted to participate.

“They will send us an email with the questions and the programs they’d like us to ask questions and provide information about them,” said Gale Kilbury, career counselor for the UIS Career Development Center.

The Career Development staff sought out and found answers to online student questions and then replied to them by email. It wasn’t only the online students that had a lot of questions.

“I’ve found out that the programs do vary. It’s not just one program, so I’ve just been kind of looking around and learning what grad school is all about,” said Winters.

Kilbury says while a lot of students decide to continue their graduate education at UIS, it’s nice to let them weigh all their options.