Almost every high school student has wondered where they will be in ten years. Where they will live, how they will look, and what job they will have. It is often very hard for a high school student to know exactly what they will be doing, or even what they are truly passionate about. Rafa Romasanta, for example, an 11th grader just starting the IB, feels that his future is still very murky, as he has no clue what he might do as his future occupation.

This is a feeling that the first ever Pathways Career Fair, which happened on Thursday, September 7th, aimed to address. As Anthony Giles, the Arts and Activities Director at ISB who is in charge of the Pathways Career Fair, puts it, “Pathways Career Fair is an opportunity for alumni, friends or partners of ISB to share their stories and career pathways with our kids.”

The Pathways Career Fair had over 25 people presenting their occupations. Upperclassmen went to the Career Fair during their advisory period on Thursday after an introductory assembly in the CCT. 9th and 10th graders were also invited, with the University of Chicago and Rice University also in attendance. Students mainly wanted to know about “connections between universities and how they ended up in their current job. Sometimes those pathways are pretty [complicated]”, explained Mr. Giles.

Darin Sumetanon (11) stated that the Pathways Career Fair “really broadened my horizons and gave me a deeper insight to what life after high school and college will be like. High school seems like it will never end, but when it does the transition can be sudden and scary. Having experienced adults come to talk to us gave me a sense of ease about what was to come in future years, and having internships offered was exciting as well.”

Whether it was a job for the embassy or an NGO, the Pathways Career Fair was able to give students a better understanding of what to expect after college. “There were several careers on display. For example, I visited a music producer, a doctor involved with cancer research and someone from an insurance company.” says Rafa.

For younger ISB students, they can look forward to more career fairs in the future. Like Mr. Giles said, “this is our first attempt, so I don’t think the fair will be huge, but if a couple kids leave having made a connection or gotten an answer to a question, and that helps the kid in some of the choices they make, then I think it will have been a successful fair.”

Craig Dawe