EPIC Student Day Brings Hands-On Career Exploration to SCTCC Friday

(KNSI) – About 4,500 high school students from across central Minnesota will spend Friday trying out jobs instead of just reading about them.

EPIC Student Day takes over St. Cloud Technical and Community College on October 23rd. The event, short for Exploring Potential Interests and Careers, brings in students from more than 40 schools to rotate through hands-on stations run by more than 150 local employers.

Rather than a traditional career fair with tables and brochures, EPIC is built around simulations, demonstrations and tasks students can try themselves. Organizers say the goal is to give teens a real feel for the work, the skills and schooling it takes, and where those jobs exist in the local economy.

Students can weld, practice suturing, troubleshoot a computer network or work a mock crime scene. Court staff from the 7th Judicial District will hold mock trials throughout the day, the health science area includes a live birth simulation, and Coborn’s is hosting a grocery bagging competition. Some of the agriculture and construction activities will be outside.

The stations are grouped into career clusters ranging from agriculture and health science to digital technology, public safety and retail.

There’s also a hometown pitch built in. Organizers hope that showing students the opportunities close to home will convince more of them to stay in the area, or come back after college, when they start their careers.

For more information on the event, click here.

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