More than 100 companies from 20 states will be on hand for the sixth annual Engineering and Computer Science Career Fair at West Virginia University Oct. 11-13.

Sponsored by WVU s College of Engineering and Mineral Resources, the fair is expected to draw more than 2,000 of the schools undergraduate and graduate students in search of internships, cooperative education positions and permanent employment opportunities.

The participating companies will have tables set up in the ground-floor hallway of the Engineering Sciences Building and in the atrium of the adjacent Mineral Resources Building from 9:30 a.m.-3:30 p.m. Wednesday and Thursday. On Friday, many companies will stay on campus to conduct individual interviews made by appointment during the fair.

Participating employers include a wide range of regional and national engineering firms, energy companies, manufacturers and government agencies that employ engineers and computer scientists. They include American Electric Power, Chesapeake Energy, Chevron, Columbia Gas Transmission, CONSOL Energy, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Halliburton, HDR Engineering, Lockheed Martin, Milliken and Co., Maryland State Highway Administration, NAVAIR , Ohio Department of Transportation, Siemens Building Technologies, Turner Construction and the West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection.

Many of the companies are from the mid-Atlantic region, but others are from as far away as Connecticut, California, South Carolina and Florida.

We are very excited about this years fair,said David Durham, the colleges coordinator of corporate relations and career assistance.Employers continue to return to our college because they know that they will find high-caliber engineering and computer science students here. We are very excited to offer this opportunity to our students.

In addition to internships for current students and permanent employment opportunities for those approaching graduation, many companies offer cooperative education positions, or co-ops, which involve periods of full-time work alternating with periods of full-time study in the students field of interest. Co-ops offer students the opportunity to gain professional experience while earning their degree and can also help them pay for college.

For more information, contact Durham at david.durham@mail.wvu.edu or 304-293-4821 ext. 2201.