Students in the Department of Computer Science had the recent opportunity to attend the annual careers fair organised by the department, enabling them to connect with employers from the computing, IT, and engineering sectors.
Hosted in the University’s 13m Tech Hub, the students were invited to interact with employers and find out about graduate opportunities and placements. They also had the opportunity to meet with Edge Hill alumni who work for the companies attending, access postgraduate study information and get advice from the Careers Team all under one roof.
An important event in the academic calendar, the fair is held so that students can find out more about the careers they are interested in, speak informally to as many exhibitors as possible and make valuable contacts for the future.
“We were delighted to welcome companies, organisations, and industry representatives to our computer science and engineering careers fair. Providing students with the chance to interact with potential employers is important preparation for their future careers. The careers fair is also a great opportunity for employers to get a sense of the skills and knowledge we equip our students with. Thanks to our guests and all involved in making this annual event a huge success.”
Professor Amr Ahmed
Head of Department of Computer Science
Building connections for the future
“The careers fair is the perfect opportunity to meet potential employers and discover your future career path. I’d highly recommend any student to attend, whether they’re a new student or an experienced final year student.”
Élise Westbury-Jones
BSc (Hons) Computing (Networks, Cyber Security and Forensics)
The event attracted organisations from a wide range of sectors with regional and national employers attending such as Matalan Retail Limited, The Walton Centre – NHS Trust, Lancashire County Council and d3t Ltd.
“As an AI company with one of the largest data science teams in the country, it’s no surprise we’re passionate about hiring and developing great people. Careers fairs are mutually beneficial for students and industry in that they create a network of companies, roles and talent. We always look forward to meeting enthusiastic individuals and guiding them on the skills and experience they’ll need to work in our sector.”
Peak
“Part of my role is to engage with the public to offer cyber security advice and raise awareness of our Prevent Programme. It is important for us to attend careers fairs to give advice to students. We also raise awareness off cyber crime offences and reinforce the messages that everyone must stay on the right side of the Law when experimenting, doing research, and testing their skills in the area of computer science. It’s also great to share my experience of how I got into this career through the police and that there are many different routes into cyber security.”
PC Charlie Bamber, Cyber Protect / Prevent Officer
Lancashire Constabulary
Alumni success
Vanessa graduated from Edge Hill University in 2015. She studied BSc (Hons) Computing. She now works for Peak who are an AI company. At Peak Vanessa is responsible for building AI solutions for customers as part of the data science team.
“It’s surreal being back on campus since graduating. The Tech Hub wasn’t here then so it’s great to see the new technology and laboratories available to students. Some advice I would give students is to have a portfolio of data problems solved online and, most importantly, be driven and have a passion for what you do.”
Vanessa Virgo
BSc (Hons) Computing
Data Scientist at Peak
Nouredine graduated from Edge Hill University in 2022. He studied BSc (Hons) Computer Science. He attended the computer science and engineering careers fair during his final year, where he spoke with exhibitors BeyondTrust and handed over a copy of his CV. Following this he received a phone call asking him if he’d be interested in attending an interview for the position of graduate software engineer.
“At Beyond Trust there’s plenty of opportunity for promotion and progression. I started in 2022 as a Graduate Software Engineer and one year later was promoted to Junior Software Engineer, which is already being reviewed after just 18 months in post. My computer science degree gave me a good general knowledge of software development processes, enabling me to transfer these skills into most industries, with learning on the job. The advice I would give to students is to get involved in every opportunity you can. You never know what it could lead onto.”
Nouredine Ould-Ahmed
BSc (Hons) Computer Science
Junior Software Engineer at BeyondTrust
February 19, 2024
