WSSU Career & Graduate School Expo draws record 1,900 students, 160 employers
A record 1,900 Winston-Salem State University students met with prospective employers and graduate school officials Sept. 15 while taking advantage of the university’s 2026 Career & Graduate School Expo.
Students had the opportunity to interact with representatives from a wide range of companies and higher education institutions at the expo, sponsored by Career Development Services and held inside the Donald J. Reaves Student Activities Center.
The semiannual event was at capacity with 160 employers — the largest number ever to participate in the expo — according to Dr. Bradley Merritt, director of Career Development Services. He said the record number of students represented a 29% increase over the 1,470 in attendance at last fall’s event.
“There really is something for everyone here,” Merritt said. “We have NASCAR here, Atrium here, accounting firms, law schools, government agencies, so this is a really good opportunity to explore careers, gain industry insights and to apply and interview for post-graduate and internship opportunities.”
Ryan Chester, associate director of graduate admissions for the McColl School of Business at Queens University of Charlotte, said his institution regularly attends WSSU’s expo.
“The students that I’ve interacted with today have all had a program of interest and knew what they wanted but also were open to exploring other options,” Chester said. “It’s always good to have those engaging conversations.”
Robert Davis, a regional recruiter for the North Carolina Department of Public Safety, said his organization also regularly attends the expo.
“Winston-Salem’s a great place and a great school that has a lot of students that are well-focused on achieving their goals and securing employment, hopefully within their majors,” Davis said. “They’re all well-dressed. They start early, even the freshmen, so I’m very impressed with that.”
Myana Brooks of Washington was among the freshmen in attendance.
“I came out today to see possible opportunities for my future,” said Brooks, who’s considering psychology as her major. “I think this is a good opportunity for all of us to see what we want to do or if we want to change what we want to do. I think our institution wants its students to be great, and this is a great way to pave the way for us to be great.”
Special Agent Antwan Happoldt with North Carolina Alcohol Law Enforcement has attended WSSU’s career fair for four years. “One of my biggest takeaways is just really coming out and seeing the students super engaged, all well-dressed, all answering and asking the right questions,” he said.
And then there was the swag. Everything from bite-sized chocolate candy, drinking cups and ink pens to cloth bags, squeeze balls and coupons for free Waffle House waffles or hash browns was free for the taking.
While many students took advantage of the giveaways, what they most needed — and wanted — was advice.
Jimmy Stevens III, a junior accounting major from Charlotte, said he talked to Vanguard, among other companies. “I’m blessed to be at Winston-Salem State University and to be able to talk to all of these companies,” Stevens said. “I’m trying to position myself for a full-time job. I’ve also talked to Nationwide and the FBI and other companies.”
Kendra Powell, a senior business administration major also from Charlotte, wanted direct knowledge on how to expand her background in business administration and pivot into a new industry.
Powell, a makeup artist and wig stylist, has operated her own business, A Beat by KP, for seven years. She came to the expo looking for ways to translate that entrepreneurial experience into opportunities in another industry.
“I wanted to reach out and network with a bunch of other executives in business and just kind of see where I can fall in place and use my skills of business analytics,” Powell said.
Students said they were impressed with the number of businesses and graduate schools at the expo.
The admiration went both ways.
Dr. Tatum Taylor, assistant director of graduate admissions, recruiting and outreach at East Carolina University, couldn’t praise WSSU — or its students — enough.
“The graduate fair at Winston-Salem State University is always the biggest, the most prepared,” Taylor said. “I spend the most time talking. I use most of my materials. It is the Olympics of grad fairs as far as the fall recruiting season.
“The students here know what they want to study, they know how to talk about themselves, they dress professionally, they bring resumes and are so on the ball,” Taylor continued. “I wish I could invite someone from Winston-Salem to do a professional development workshop at ECU, or at least I could take some tips for myself on how to get our student body and our grad fair to the level that I always experience at Winston-Salem.”
