40th HTM Career Day Resounds with Strong Employment Prospects

On March 5^th, several hundred students met with recruiters from 68 companies in the 40^th Annual Isenberg Hospitality & Tourism Management Career Day.  Run like clockwork by Isenberg HTM students, the stylish event featured a central career fair in the Campus Center Auditorium, individual information sessions hosted by recruiting firms, and, at the end of the day, a lavish reception and networking event for recruiters and students in HTM's Marriott Center for Hospitality Management.

At the career fair, impeccably dressed students, armed with resumes and business cards, sought internships, post-graduation jobs, and industry advice. The recruiting firms represented a broad brush of the hospitality industry: hotel groups like Starwood, InterContinental, and Loews, food service giants like Sodexo, prestigious country clubs, cruise lines, and two casino/entertainment groups.  While many of the visiting firms have decade-or-longer relationships with the HTM program, ten new recruiters also attended this year's event.

With the economy rebounding, recruiters and students alike were upbeat about their job prospects. "We are expanding rapidly; that means growing opportunities for graduating students, observed Robin White, Director of Human Resources with the Langham, an upscale hotel in Boston. Like many other hotel groups, the Langham has a growing portfolio of hotels in the U.S. and overseas. That increases opportunities for geographical mobility, she emphasized.

"The Department of Labor reported that the hospitality industry's employment percentage is going up, so I think it's a growing industry and they're looking to hire students," said Alissa Mendelsohn, student chairwoman in charge of marketing for the event.

"I've attended this event for the past two years," HTM junior Stephanie Coangelo told the Massachusetts Daily Collegian. "It's a great learning experience. The face time you get with recruiters prepares you for interviews and gives you practice when you are searching for a job or internship. It's beneficial to students at any point in their college careers."