IWCN at the MIT European Career Fair
The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in Cambridge, Massachusetts, hosted its 28th annual European Career Fair for prospects wanting to or curious about working, interning, and living in Europe. This fair is a great opportunity for European-based companies to recruit top talent from MIT and other universities.
Over 3000 people signed up for this year’s European Career Fair. The attendees encompassed students, working professionals, and recent alumni hailing from not only MIT but also other esteemed American universities. The representatives from Europe were equally diverse, spanning multinational corporations to non-profit organizations within the research, technology, business, and consulting sectors.
The North at MIT
The International Welcome Center North (IWCN), also representing Make It In The North, attended for the sixth time this year, to promote the three Northern Provinces. Our delegation consisted of Karen Prowse (Operations Manager at the IWCN), Dörte Mierau (Policy Advisor International Affairs at the Municipality of Groningen), and Ellen Bosma (Advisor International Affairs at the Municipality of Groningen).
Our delegation represented the Northern Netherlands and together with eleven other organizations we represented the Netherlands. The other representatives were the University of Groningen, VU Amsterdam, City of Amsterdam, Delft University of Technology, Quantify Group, Circularise, Netherlands Point of Entry, Academic Transfer, Utrecht University, International welcome Centre Utrecht Region, and Welcome to Maastricht Region.
Our experience at the ECF
On the first night, February 29, the program started with a Netherlands Welcome Night, where we met with a 120 students with drinks and pizza. At this networking event, all delegations gave a two-minute pitch about why these students should be interested in coming to the Netherlands.
On Friday, we celebrated the launch of the new MISTI (MIT International Science and Technology Initiatives) program called MIT-Netherlands. With this program, Dutch companies will be able to take on internationals for internships in the Netherlands. The MIT-Netherlands Program carefully selects a limited number of exceptionally qualified interns to be able to do an internship at prestigious companies, universities, and research organizations in the Netherlands. The benefit for Dutch companies is that these internships will not cost more, which lowers the threshold for Dutch companies to take on prospective international talent.
On Saturday March 2, the European Career Fair took place where with heaps of information and stroopwafels in hand, Karen, Dörte, and Ellen spoke to hundreds of interested candidates about the opportunities in the North of the Netherlands.
We hope to have excited, inspired, and motivated many of the attendees about what makes the Northern Netherlands special and how many job opportunities the North has.
Why attend the ECF?
As one of the largest fairs of its kind, this fair provided a dynamic platform where we were able to connect with new STEM talent interested in exploring opportunities in Europe. It served as a testament to the thriving interest in STEM fields and the eagerness of both companies and candidates to explore new horizons. It’s a stepping stone toward building a more interconnected and innovative future for STEM in the Netherlands.
Whereas the Netherlands in general is known as a large economy and a frontrunner on technical innovation, the North is usually not first in line. By attending MIT’s European Career Fair, we can introduce to them what the North has to offer. Not only do Groningen, Friesland, and Drenthe offer a high standard of living in a quieter area of the Netherlands, it also has a multitude of job opportunities and a rich and vibrant international community.
About Make It In The North:
Make It In The North represents over 250 Northern Dutch companies who are interested in hiring international talent. All their job listings are exclusively for people who don’t speak fluent Dutch (yet). In doing so, MIITN solves two major problems: the shortage on the Northern Dutch job market and internationals not being able to find work when they don’t speak Dutch yet. They create a bridge between companies in the Northern Netherlands, and English-speaking talent through a dedicated career-oriented job portal, networking events, job fairs, and unwavering enthusiasm.
About the IWCN:
The International Welcome Center North offers a range of valuable services for internationals and companies who hire them, from formalities processing to answering questions and organizing integration events, and from personal advice to business guidance. By facilitating these services for internationals, we aim to ease their transition into living in the Netherlands and to support them along the way whenever they have questions. We also work with Dutch companies to lower the threshold for them in hiring international talent from beyond the borders of the Netherlands and even the European Union.
Is your company interested in learning more about how the IWCN can help you hire international talent or are you interested in listing your vacancies on Make It In The North? We’re always open for a chat! Email us at info@iwcn.nl, call us, or walk into our office!