By Ariel Steinsaltz
Staff Writer
The Student Recreation Center was filled with representatives from different companies and industries on Feb. 21., providing students with a chance to explore potential future employment opportunities at the semiannual career fair.
The career fair served as a networking opportunity for students and employers, as well as a chance for students to learn about internships and job opportunities. According to Debra Klokis, associate director of the College’s Career Center, the College has been hosting career fairs for more than 15 years. This year, there were 20 to 25 new employers who did not attend last year.
“We have a lot of the same employers, which is nice to have some consistency, but this year we have a lot of new employers … it’s nice to see how the name recognition of the College is spreading,” Klokis said.
Several returning employers spoke highly of students from the College who were hired as interns.
“We’ve really loved our interns from TCNJ,” said Tyler Stamberger, the guest experience supervisor at Six Flags Great Adventure. “We want to make sure that we come back to who does us good.”
Wendy Soos, the director of Jewish Community Center of Princeton Mercer Bucks and Abrams Camps, also praised students from the College that the community center has hired.
“We have several staff members that are currently going to TCNJ,” Soos said. “They have such a high caliber teaching program and we’re always looking for teachers.”
Johnson & Johnson had the most representation out of all the employers, and had an entire row of tables with representatives available to talk to students.
“We’re definitely one of the bigger organizations that recruit out of TCNJ,” said Kristina Parag, a customer strategy analyst for Johnson & Johnson. “People like to work for companies that they relate to … we have a great reputation.”
Various booths featured many types of occupational environments, from financial servicing companies to amusement parks, as well as many other options for students to explore and build professional connections.
Sumaya Sippy, a sophomore public health major, was focused on making good first impressions on potential employers at the fair.
“I’m definitely looking to network and build some relationships with companies I might want to work for in the future,” Sippy said.
As students began to file out of the once-crowded Recreation Center at the end of the fair, employers packed up their belongings and prepared to return to their workplaces — both happy to have made new connections and lasting impressions.
