College Students Explore Diverse Opportunities at MRO Americas
The aviation industry offers a wealth of opportunities for young professionals from diverse backgrounds, as students from several Georgia colleges discovered during their tour of the MRO Americas show floor and panel discussions.
Students from Clark Atlanta University, Morehouse College and Georgia State University visited exhibitors such as AAR, Lufthansa Technic, Boeing, GE and Delta TechOps to learn about various career paths within the industry before engaging in two panel discussions.
Nahzire West, a sophomore at Georgia State, studying business administration with a focus on marketing, shared his enthusiasm for the event. "I had considered a career in aviation previously, but I never really looked into it further, so I'm here to learn more about it," West said.
The event highlighted the variety of roles available in the aviation sector, ranging from maintenance and technical positions to service-related jobs, such as training and development, flight instruction and leadership positions. This inclusive environment allows individuals with diverse skill sets and backgrounds to find fulfilling career paths within the industry.
During a lunchtime panel discussion led by Joshua Pierce of The Diversity Org, participants emphasized the importance of networking and internships for accessing opportunities in the aviation industry. Internships serve an important role for companies to determine their prospective hires, panelists said.
Panelists also shared personal stories of landing internships and jobs through networking and taking advantage of unexpected opportunities and highlighted the diverse career paths within the industry, from traditional roles such as mechanics and engineers to more unusual ones like virtual reality training developers and aviation attorneys.