Career Services and Career XPO

Career Services

The main functions of the Architecture Career Services Office center on four major tasks: soliciting and publicizing job openings for students and graduates, facilitating on-campus interviews between prospective employers and our students, organizing the annual Career Expo, and providing resume and job search assistance counseling and programming.

Current students and prospective employers wishing to learn more about services and programs available through the Career Services Office should contact Associate Director of Student Services La Tanya Cobb.

Employers from across the country representing the fields of Architecture and Urban and Regional Planning will come to the University of Illinois campus to showcase their firms, build relationships with the university, and interview potential candidates for both summer and full-time employment. Career XPO is hosted by the Illinois School of Architecture and organized through the Undergraduate Office.

For more information beyond these pages, please contact Career XPO Director Carl G. Lewis or Office Manager Rhonda Frank.

Location

• I Hotel and Conference Center, 1900 S 1st St, Champaign, IL 61820

Schedule

Thursday, March 2

• 8:00 am – 9:00 am: Recruiter check in and set up. (Conference Center lobby) Continental breakfast is available for all registered recruiters at this time.
• 9:00 am: CAREER XPO 2023 opens (Heritage Hall)
• 12:00 pm: Box lunches available for all registered recruiters at this time.
• 4:30 pm: CAREER XPO exhibit hall closes for the day.
• 4:30 pm – 6:00 pm: Career XPO Social for all recruiters, students, and faculty – Lobby

Friday, March 3

• 8:00 am: Recruiters set up – Heritage Hall. Continental breakfast is available for all registered recruiters at this time.
• 9:00 am: CAREER XPO 2023 opens (Heritage Hall)
• 12:00 pm: Career XPO exhibit hall closes. Recruiters, please take down displays, hand in surveys, and check-out.

The Honors Room is available as a Lounge for firm representatives.

Student Information

Grad students, seniors, juniors, sophomores, and freshmen: Career XPO is for you!

Students are able to interview firms—to ask questions about architecture and the future they envision. For juniors, seniors, and graduate students this is a great opportunity to meet and interview the representatives— many of whom are the decision-makers for hiring. You will also want to sell yourself to them. For freshman and sophomores, this is an exceptional time to find out more about architecture from practitioners, laying the groundwork for future employment.

Mock interviews are a learning tool to prepare students for success in their job interviews. Held on Wednesday, March 1, 2023, at the I-Hotel and Conference Center, a mock interview is a practice interview that will result in valuable feedback from professionals representing local and national firms. Students receive a 15-20 minute interview followed by a 10-15 minute feedback period for interviewers to discuss your performance with you. This review is a great informal opportunity to ask employers what you can do to improve your interviewing skills. You must request and be scheduled for an interview time slot. More information on mock interviews will be forthcoming from the Gargoyle Architecture Honor Society as the event date draws near.

Volunteer! This is a great time to get involved by volunteering to work and meet the employers! Contact Carl Lewis (cglewis1@illinois.edu, 217-333-7720) about how you can help.

Events leading up to the XPO

Friday, February 3, 2023 – Resume Workshop
1:00 pm – Zoom

Friday, February 18, 2023 – Resume Review/Portfolio Review
1:00 pm – Zoom – Professionals will critique your work before you present it.

Employer Information

EMPLOYER REGISTRATION FORM

We recommend that you read the following information carefully.  The information below can also be found in PDF form for printing below.

Important Dates

(Please note: We can take registrations until the day of the event, but cannot guarantee space to those who wait that long.)

January 31

Last day to reserve room at I Hotel at the block-room rate

February 1

Last day to cancel registration with refund; last day to receive discounted fee.

February 17

Firms: Last day to submit information for our Employer Guide (given to students at XPO)

February 27- March 1

Any shipments must arrive at the I Hotel and Conference Center during this period
NO EARLIER AND NO LATER (see Shipping Guidelines below)

March 2-3, 2023

Career XPO 2023!

Exhibit Space Information

• Your firm will have a 6′ x 3′ table available for your display. We will make every attempt to honor your pin-up and electrical requests.
• If you plan to bring a large display – larger than 6′ x 3′ space would allow – please let us know.
• Pin-up is limited so you may want to consider bringing alternatives such as tri-pods.
• On Thursday, the XPO Hall will open at 9:00 am and close at 4:30 p.m.
• On Friday, the XPO Hall will open at 9:00 am and close at 12:00 p.m.
• You should NOT leave valuables unattended at your booth or in the building.

Equipment Provided

• Each company receives one 6’x3′ table and two chairs per table, plus an electrical outlet at each table
• Wireless Internet is provided at the I Hotel and Conference Center

Interview Space Information

In addition to your exhibit space, there are ample spaces available throughout the conference center for you to arrange personal interviews. A separate lounge area is also provided for recruiters.

Cancellations

Please be aware that the latest possible date to notify us of a cancellation and receive a full refund is February 1, 2023. If we are notified after this date, payment will not be refunded.

Hotel Information
I Hotel and Conference Center, 1900 South First Street, Champaign, IL 61820; (217) 819-5000

To make a room reservation at the I Hotel go to the Career XPO hotel booking link. It will ask you for a group code (XPO2023) and a password (Al4@u) that will take you directly to the Career XPO landing page, offering you a special pre-loaded rate. Any guests wishing to make reservations by phone please call 217-819-5000 and mention the block code (XPO2023) or block title, “Architecture XPO 2023” to any of our Guest Service Agents. This hotel block will be available to our guests until the cutoff date of 1/31/2023.

For additional hotel information, check out the I Hotel website. (Room cancellations must be made no later than 4 p.m. 24-hours prior to the arrival date to avoid incurring a cancellation fee of one night’s stay. The block has a limited number of rooms available to XPO participants – so make your reservations early!)

Hawthorn Suites
101 Trade Center Drive
Champaign, IL 61820
(217) 398-3400

Hilton Garden Inn
1501 S. Neil Street
Champaign, IL 61820
(217) 352-9970

Travel Information

FLYING

Local airport is Willard Airport (CMI). It is approximately a 10-15 minute drive to the I Hotel, or your hotel. Shuttle service is available from your hotel. Please phone the hotel directly ahead of time to reserve your seat.

DRIVING

If driving to Champaign-Urbana, find directions at: https://parking.illinois.edu/maps/directions-campus. A map and legend of the Illinois campus may be found at www.illinois.edu

PARKING

Parking is available at the I Hotel and Conference Center. The Illinois School of Architecture and the Career XPO are not responsible for tickets or towed vehicles.

Shipping Guidelines

In the event you choose to ship your display materials, please use the following address. We ask that you please arrange for shipping to arrive no earlier than Monday, February 27, 2023.

Please clearly mark in bold red type all items with your company name, the dates(s) you will be attending, and ‘CAREER XPO 2023.’ All items should be addressed as follows (for example):

Illinois School of Architecture
Career XPO 2023
<Your Firm Name>
<Date(s) you are attending>
I Hotel and Conference Center
1900 South First St.
Champaign, IL 61820-7450

(For multiple shipped pieces, number them appropriately, i.e. ‘FIRM NAME, 1 of 3,’ ‘2 of 3,’ and so on)

All inquiries regarding shipments should be made through your carrier service. The IHotel cannot verify shipments.

For return shipments: please pack all items securely and label clearly with the carrier’s shipping bill. Be sure to include your company’s account number and attach your prepaid return shipping form.

Contact

Carl G. Lewis, cglewis1@illinois.edu