YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio – Youngstown State University alumnus Cole Popichak of Howmet Aerospace Inc. sees great opportunities at the company’s Niles location for students attending Thursday’s YSU STEM Spring Expo.
“Eight out of our 13 engineers right now are YSU alumni,” Popichak said of Howmet, which was one of the sponsoring companies of the event, along with Butech Bliss, Dearing Compressor and Steel Equipment Specialists LLC.
There was a line of students waiting to speak to Popichak and another representative of Howmet, which produces titanium alloys for the aerospace industry.
“This year, we’re expanding what we’re looking for,” Popichak said. “We’re looking for people for the technical side as well as the operations side. Essentially, we’re looking for interns who can help support the manufacturing process to help us make better metal, get more metal for our customers, improving our quality and our yield.”
He said the company wants to foster some young engineers for the operations side of the business.
Luis Casillas, a sophomore majoring in electrical engineering tech, was one of the students standing in line seeking an internship at Howmet. “It’s pretty popular, especially with engineers,” Casillas said of the company. “It’s close around here, so if you live in the area, it’s a really good place to get in.”
Another student standing in line to speak with the Howmet representatives was Vamsi Seela, who is in his final semester as a masters-level student in the computer information systems program. He is seeking a full-time position, if possible, but he said he was willing to take an internship to gain experience. Seela said he had connected with two companies that he felt were possibilities as he seeks business analysis or data analysis positions.
Sherri Hrusovski, executive director of the YSU College of Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics, said the YSU STEM Spring Expo included 82 companies, and only halfway through the event Thursday, there were already 300 students attending.
Matt Zines, an engineer for 17 years with Flex-N-Gate, which operates Ventra Salem, was at the event to talk to students about opportunities with the company.
“It’s a lot of problem solving,” Zines said. “It’s applied mechanical engineering, and if you really want to define it at the end of the day, we’re managing a program. So it’s finance, design, hands on, and you have to be very good with customers.”
Zines said Ventra will need people who are ready to step into roles as an aging group of engineers prepares to retire. And it can take time to find people who are the right fit. He was looking for interns and co-ops who could eventually fill those positions.
“We see there are really, really good quality people coming out of college that are hardworking, motivated and intelligent,” Zines said.
Talisa Lee, a sophomore majoring in civil engineering, was looking for an internship for the summer. She found the STEM Expo as a good way to “scope out” some of her opportunities and hopefully find a full-time job.
Emily Held of LSSE Civil Engineers and Surveyors Inc. in Coraopolis, Pa., spoke with Lee and liked that she had a strong interest in surveying. Held said YSU has some classes but does not offer a surveying certificate. The company was looking for students interested in gaining experience in the field, and Held said she had spoken to a few good candidates.
Pictured at top: Melik Kilic, left, a YSU graduate who majored in mechanical engineering, talks with Matt Zines, an engineer with Flex-N-Gate, which operates Ventra Salem. The company was also represented by Emma Norris, right.