Queen's University students will have the opportunity to make contacts that can lead to summer employment or even a future career at the Engineering and Technology Fair.

The annual event returns to Grant Hall and will be held on Tuesday, Oct. 20 and Wednesday, Oct. 21 from 10:30 am-3:30 pm each day. Hosted by Career Services at Queen’s the fair brings together more than 50 employers from a wide range of industries in both the public and private sectors.

The event is also an opportunity for a selected group of students to showcase projects they are working on through the university.

Among the students presenting is Natasha Baziuk, a member of the winning team from this year’s Queen’s Innovation Connector Summer Initiative. Gryllies is a small business that seeks to off-set beef consumption with cricket protein to create a more nutritious and environmentally sustainable way to enjoy popular meat dishes like pasta sauce, chili, and lasagna.

Several of the founding members, including Ms. Baziuk, have chosen to pursue Gryllies as a full-time venture upon graduation.

“Having the Engineering and Technology Fall Fair acknowledge and encourage entrepreneurship as a viable career choice for graduating students is wonderful to see,” says Ms. Baziuk. “Entrepreneurship is imperative in supporting the local economy, in stimulating innovation, and in student's having the freedom and courage to pursue their own life’s path when they are young and are more able to take on the risk involved in start-up companies. Gryllies is very happy to be a showcase of what is possible when one takes on the entrepreneurial path upon graduation.”

She adds that it will be an interesting return as last year she attended the event as a fourth-year student looking for a job. This time around she says she’s excited about the opportunity to talk to other employers about Gryllies and any advice they may offer.

Also presenting is Morgan Litschko of the Queen’s Genetically Engineered Machine, a student run team that undertakes an innovative set of projects in the field of synthetic biology each year. The team recently earned a gold medal at the International Genetically Engineered Machine competition in Cambridge, Mass.

Ms. Litschko says the Engineering and Technology Fair is a chance for the group to present their work to their peers, attract future members, and generate ideas for future work.

“This portion of the fair also highlights the innovation of student teams and the potential of these endeavors,” she says. “There is a lot of creativity and dedication associated with these projects and this provides the opportunity to generate industry connections for individuals as well as the team. In essence, we put a lot of time and hard work into what we’ve done and this is a chance to share our accomplishments with others.”

Last year, three out of the four students who presented were able to secure summer employment from employers at the fair. The fair is held annually in October and January.  Follow #careerfairqueens on Twitter for updates and info about this event.