Missed this year’s CPA Fair? No worries, we have all the details for you right here.

By Arisleydi Garcia. Special contributions from Camille Hall, Adia Tucker, and Ruixiang Wu.

Last Fall, 400 students attended the CPA Fair hosted in the Gym. This year the Fair was hosted in the 14^th Floor Conference room since the gym was unavailable. The number of student participants increased to 564 students, with 337 representing the undergraduate population here at Baruch. Only 65% of undergraduate students who attended the Fair were majoring in Accounting. In addition, the number of male and female undergraduate students who attended the Fair was relatively close, with 155 females and 173 males.

At this point, you’re probably wondering what exactly took place at the Fair. The simplest answer: networking, networking, networking. A variety of top firms and midsize firms attended the Fair totaling to a representation of 29 companies.

Many firms brought several representatives to the Fair, allowing students the chance to interact with more than one recruiter per company. Students also had a chance to be photographed for their LinkedIn profile picture. When asked to give feedback on the Fair, a few students stated the following:

“I get to know people in the company I’m interested in. I get to connect with them in a personal level.” – Fahmidha Islam

“It’s very helpful. You get very important information from recruiters. They tell you all about their internships, training programs, what year they want you to start – mostly juniors for the internships. But if you’re young and want more networking experience, you should come to this fair.” – Lishan Li

Recruiters provided anonymous tips on how to network. Here is what they had to say:

“Depending on the company there may be certain guidelines on how to follow up. However, a good way to connect would be to reach out via LinkedIn. Following up makes a huge difference after a career fair.”

“Be yourself! Try not to get to nervous. Bring up different things outside of the norm in small talk discussions. For example, share a little bit about a past experience or how you got to Baruch College.”

“Have experience and I don’t mean just work experience. Experience includes a varied educational background.”

Lastly, we also spoke to Dr. Patricia Imbimbo, the Director of The Starr Career Development Center, about her perspective on the Fair. Dr. Imbimbo said:

“I would like to commend all the Baruch students in attendance at the CPA Fair on Friday September 27th for their good conduct and manners. They behaved in a mature and professional manner when asked to leave at 2pm to make room for other students.The students waiting in line, sometimes for an hour or more, also remained polite and understanding until they were admitted. It was a testament to the civility of Baruch students and we were all impressed with their behavior.”

All in all, the Fall 2013 CPA Fair was a hugely successful event for Baruch students and recruiters alike. Baruch undergraduates will have another opportunity to network with professionals, gain valuable information, and polish their personal pitches at this week’s Career Day, which will be held on Friday, October 4^th from noon to 4:00 in the gymnasium. The recruiters at Career Day will represent a variety of career fields and they will be looking for budding professionals from ALL majors, so get your résumés and your formal business attire ready! The Starr Career Development Center looks forward to hosting another successful job fair on Friday and getting your feedback on the event.

Good luck!

Review of Spring 2013 Undergraduate Career Fair

By: Jason Ioffe

On April 12^ththe Starr Career Development Center hosted its annual Spring Undergraduate Career Fair. Over 350 students donned business attire and brought freshly polished resumes to meet with over 30 recruiters in the Newman Vertical Campus’s gymnasium.

Senior students made up the largest turnout at the event – no doubt, taking advantage of the term’s last career fair to explore options for post-graduation. But surprisingly Baruch freshmen also made up almost a quarter of the fair’s attendees. Whether these freshmen aimed to learn the ropes of career development or wanted to hit the ground running with an internship, they were confident enough to stand toe with upperclassmen.

Freshman Jason Wu was very optimistic about meeting employers and standing out from the crowd. “As a freshman, I expected to be at a disadvantage, but it wasn’t really a problem at all,” he said.

Last February’s undergraduate internship fair may have had a larger turnout of nearly 600 students, but the attendance during April’s career fair ensured that all students had an equal chance to speak to recruiters over the course of four hours.

Safayet Kajol a sophomore at Baruch said, “The career fair is a wonderful opportunity for students to interact with recruiters and learn about opportunities that they can apply to for in the future.”

Representatives from American International Group (AIG) maintained a steady line of students throughout the event as they, for the first time in history, recruited for internal auditing directly on-campus at Baruch.

AIG Technology Audit Manager, Sumukh Shah, said he met with many sophomores and Computer Information System majors that day compared to the students he spoke with during last February’s internship fair. He and his colleagues also mentioned they were happy with how engaging and friendly the students were.

A similar sentiment was shared by Kim Wong, a recruiter from the CUNY IT Specialists Internship program. “We love Baruch students because they are very responsible and hard-working. We love working with the SCDC,” she said.

SCDC Introduces New Career Fair Resources

Earlier this year, the SCDC began using iPods to give students attending the day an easy and simple experience when sharing their feedback. Both the staff and Baruch students recognize the sleek, simple design of the iPods as not only an easy way of offering feedback but an attractive way of engaging students in commenting on the resources.
In addition to the iPod feedback forms, a new coat check system was introduced on April 12th thanks to efforts from the Peers for Careers and SCDC senior staff members. While coat checks came with a $1 fee from students, a portion of the proceeds were donated directly to Relay for Life, to help fund cancer research. Within just a few hours, this new system raised over $70 for the cause.
With introductions to new resources at the fair, the SCDC also continued to lend ties and suit jackets to students in need to help Baruch students make the best first impression.

Career fairs are powerful networking mediums available to Baruch students. The SCDC is committed to making the experience for students a valuable and productive one. If you missed this semester’s career fair, there will be a chance to attend other career fairs this fall. All it costs is the time spent putting the finishing touches on your resume and attending the fair polished and ready–a small price to pay for the potential opportunities to discover.
Jason is a sophomore at Baruch majoring in Computer Information Systems. He is currently a Peer for Career at the Starr Career Development Center and the Webmaster of Starrlights.

Want to Pursue an Ad-Hoc Major at Baruch?

By: Harshita Parikh

What if you cannot find one field which you are really passionate about among Baruch’s over 20 majors? What do you do if your interests must be limited to one particular department, but actually span a number of them?

The Weissman School of Arts and Sciences Ad-Hoc major may be the right choice for you.

The Create Your Own Major Ad-Hoc program has existed at Baruch College for nearly 35 years. It is a good option for students who have not established their majors and would like to explore this unconventional, but creative and productive educational option.

The Ad-Hoc major allows students to create and name their own major by combining different courses from two or more liberal arts departments into an integrated field of study. Students with an Ad-Hoc major graduate with a Bachelor of Arts in the Weissman School of Arts and Sciences.

Before submitting the application to propose an Ad-Hoc major, students must attend the informational Ad-Hoc workshop led by Dr. Wendy Heyman. The next Ad-Hoc workshop for the will be on Tuesday April 9^th from 5:00 pm to 6:15 pm in room 2-190. The last and final ad-hoc workshop for the spring semester will be on Monday May 6th at 5pm in room 2-190.

So how do you know if you are the right student for the Ad-Hoc program?

According to Dr. Wendy Heyman, who works as a liberal arts and sciences coordinator and career counselor at the Starr Career Development Center, applicants should be “self-reflective” when writing their proposals for the major they hope to create.

“The intended majors as created by the students should reflect the great scope for both intellectual and personal development,” she said.

Some of the approved Ad-Hoc majors have included names such as “From Page to Stage”, “Social Justice and Politics”, “Law and the Underrepresented”, “Music and Culture”, and “Business of Art.”

A student who created her own Ad-Hoc major called “Practical & Ethical Application in Business”, which combines undergraduate courses from a variety of Baruch liberal arts departments including Communications, Psychology, and Business Law, explained at an Ad-Hoc workshop in March that her unique field of study helped her as a candidate applying for jobs.

Creating my own major helped me to become much more independent and self – reliant. In addition, it also leaves a very good impression on employers. An Ad-Hoc major represents that I am self sufficient and creative because I have successfully pieced together my own major. This unique and self-created major can be used as good marketing tools during a job search,” she said in an interview.

“Ad-Hoc majors can help the students to look within themselves and find their own voice. In this act of defining and creating their own majors, the students take initiative and learn to express and promote themselves,” Dr. Heyman said.

Ad-Hoc majors are not available for students within the Zicklin School of Business or the School of Public Affairs, however students wishing to enhance their knowledge of business to adapt to the workplace may take up to 9 credits from these schools which can be used in their Ad-Hoc major.

Some of the basic requirements for the Ad-Hoc major determined by the Weissman School of Arts and Sciences are:

A minimum of 30 credits, including 24 liberal arts credits
A minimum of three courses from two different departments within the Weissman School of Arts and Sciences
A maximum of three non-liberal arts courses
Ad-Hoc Major Approval at least one semester prior to graduation.
At least 60% of the major courses must be taken at Baruch College.

Students interested in pursuing an Ad-Hoc major must submit a proposal (250 – 300 words) to the Weissman School of Arts and Sciences after attending the mandatory informational workshop at the SCDC.

The proposal must summarize details of an intended liberal arts major while explaining reasons for creating the major, how the major differs from others available at Baruch, and how the intended major may play a role in a student’s future aspirations.

For more information please click this link and be sure to attend the workshop on April 9^th.

Harshita Parikh is a Peer for Career and a senior at Baruch College majoring in International Business. She is also a key member of Baruch’s Operation Smile and she studied abroad in China last summer.

Review of Spring 2013 Internship Fair

By: Kamelia Kilawan

It is 2pm as the onset of blizzard Nemo is closely approaching and Baruch students file into the gymnasium dressed in suits, ties, and skirts—polished with resumes in hand and their personal pitches ready for recruiters.

On Friday, Feb. 8^th the Starr Career Development Center held their annual undergraduate internship fair with over 36 companies recruiting in the gymnasium of the Newman Vertical Campus. The event had a turnout of nearly 600 students—more students than last year’s internship fair according to records from the SCDC. Amidst a pending snowstorm, early dismissals of students from classes, and managers giving their employees the afternoon off—many Baruch students were still lining up for the fair.

“I think the take-away of this event is the unbelievable resilience and determination of your fellow students,” said Deputy Director of the SCDC Dr. Ellen Stein.

Jessica Saavedra, 22, a senior majoring in Computer Information Systems said she was still looking for an internship and decided that she had to come to the fair even though she needed to commute back during the snowstorm to work in a pizzeria in Astoria, Queens.

Unfortunately two of the companies she was hoping to reach did not make it to the fair, she suspected because of the blizzard. But Saavedra said the event was still quite beneficial for her.

“I think that when you talk to them you can actually get the feel for the company,” she said mentioning that at the fair you are able to take notes of the company culture through their recruiters.

In the bustling gymnasium dozens of tables were set up for recruiting managers of companies while groups of students approached them dressed in black and navy suits. But outside the fair was just as busy with staff members from the SCDC giving feedback forms to students on touchscreen iPods while other members of the Center were helping to select business attire for students who came without suit jackets and proper attire.

Franklin Eze, 19, borrowed a suit jacket and tie from the center’s selection of donated business clothes. He said he was not only appreciative to have the “suit-up” service but that it served as a wake-up call for how he should dress if he wants a career in business.

“I can’t go there looking like this,” Eze a transfer student hoping to major in Accounting or Finance said on Friday pointing to his jeans and polo shirt. He noted that it was his first time at a Baruch internship fair and that the dress code of internship fairs at his former community college was much more casual.

Some recruiters noticed how prepared Baruch students were for the fair. Jacqui Howard a recruiting manager for the Municipal Credit Union said she was happy to be a part of Friday’s internship fair because of the preparation and quality of the students’ questions as well as the great turnout.

“They were determined and weren’t going to let anything stop them. I was really surprised because I didn’t expect to see this turnout,” Howard said adding “It was a good day.”

Kathy Demasi, a recruiting manager for Citi and Baruch alumni who majored in Statistics in the 1980s said this internship fair was unlike the ones she remembered as part of her Baruch college experience.

“We used to put our resumes in boxes,” she said explaining that when she attended Baruch nearly thirty years ago recruiters selected the resumes based on students’ listed experiences and usually came to school to meet face-to-face for interviews.

But now she says the internship fair has an advantage for both parties because recruiters get to show enthusiasm for their companies and students get time to speak to the company’s recruiters.

As for the turnout of students at the fair, Demasi said Citi received hundreds of resumes from students who lined up in front of their table. “They know they have to get out there and get a job,” she said adding that she was pleased that the students were “eager to sell themselves and see what is out there.”

Philip Adikimenakis, a junior at Baruch and a volunteer from the Baruch Accounting Society said that he had been printing fliers for the event and arrived at Baruch at 9am to help recruiters set up their tables for the fair.

Adikimenakis said that the bustling fair made sense because the purpose of Baruch is to find a job and be successful.

“I think it truly shows how determined they are despite the blizzard,” he said of his fellow students adding “they saw the opportunity cost and saw this was greater.”

If you missed this one, it is not too late. Mark your calendar for April 12th, for the Spring Career Day. We will keep you updated with more information to come.

Kamelia is a junior at Baruch studying Journalism and Religious Studies. She is currently a Peer for Career at the Starr Career Development Center and the Editor of Starrlights.