October 04, 2011
Nearly 1,000 ambitious St. John’s students filled
Taffner Field House last week to take advantage of the University’s
annual Academic Internship Fair. The College of Professional Studies (CPS) and the
Career
Center co-sponsor the event to give students from all
majors a competitive edge in finding meaningful internships.
Kathleen Vouté MacDonald, Ed.D., Dean of the College
of Professional Studies was clearly happy with the way the event
turned out. “The Academic Internship Fair was a huge
success!” she said. “I was particularly pleased with the
placement of the exhibit tables in industry clusters. This not only
made it easier for students to locate the company representatives
they wanted to speak with, but this design also follows our vision
of career-orientation through academic disciplines.”
“The connections you can make here are so important,” said
Michael Riconda ’13CPS. The
Sport Management major attended the Internship Fair last year
with outstanding results. “ I got my foot in the door with Madison Square
Garden. ”
Photo Gallery
More than 100 major employers attended the
Internship Fair, giving students an outstanding opportunity to meet
representatives face-to-face. "I’m proud of what we accomplished by
organizing the Internship Fair for Career Week," said April
Merenda, Director of External Affairs for CPS. "We
created a priceless opportunity to engage our students by enabling
interaction with over 100 prestigious organizations from all over
the New York metropolitan area.”
This year’s list of exhibitors included such well-known names as
Adidas
,New
York Mets,U.S. Department of
Homeland Security,NYU Langone Medical
Center,WCBS-TV
and more. “We were impressed with the quality of the students who
attended, as well as the participation of so many distinguished
companies,” said Consuela D. Hooblal of
USA
Today. Ms. Hooblal was accompanied by a colleague
who made the trip down from Boston just for the event.
While the fine reputation of St. John’s students is the prime
reason so many organizations participate in the Internship Fair,
the University’s metropolitan location also plays an important
role. “St. John’s is a Queens-based organization and the Mets are,
too,” said Lawrence Fridovich, a Human Resources
Assistant with the New York Mets. “Because of the
University’s location, St. John’s Sport Management program is a
great pipeline for us. ”
Internships are every bit as competitive as full-time jobs, a
fact that is not lost on students. “They are so important to
getting a job after graduation,” said Bill San
Antonio ’12CPS. The
Journalism major added, “To be able to interact with potential
employers and distinguish myself really gives me a leg up on the
competition.”
Although the Internship Fair was an outstanding opportunity for
students, it also allowed employers to interact with members of the
future workforce. “St. John’s is a great school with a great
reputation,” said Sgt. John Ryan of the New
York City Police Department. “We find good candidates
for our program here every year.”
Paige Soltano, Director of Recruitment for Katz
Media, concurred. “We’ve had great success with St.
John’s student in the past,” she said. “We came here today to find
more of them.”
Nicole Constantin of Holiday Inn
had high praise for the energy and commitment of the students she
met at the Internship Fair. “All of the students we met with today
were really passionate about what they were doing and that’s
something we look for,” she said. “When they bring that kind of
passion to an internship, it’s great for both parties.”