Are you investing in your future? Central Connecticut’s accounting department hosted their annual Accounting and Finance Career Fair last week to guide students in doing just that.

Led by Associate Professor of Accounting Anne Marchetti, the fair had a number of local representatives from public accounting firms and private industries in attendance. Representatives from accounting and information systems masters programs were also there.

Marchetti and the accounting department’s goals of events like this is to “build relationships and network with firms and ourselves,” she said. Marchetti also hopes that students who attended do the same as far as talking to firms building relationships, handing out resumes and seeking internship along with career opportunities.

Some alumni Blue Devils made their appearance on behalf of their firms, and Marchetti was thrilled to see the number in attendance.

“I love it,” Marchetti said. “I think it’s so great. It’s a testimony to the school and the individuals that they’re willing to give back.”

Central alum Evan Vold, who graduated in 2008, has been a tax partner at King, King & Associates for about seven years. The Winsted firm specializes in nonprofit and government audits, and Vold explained that students don’t need much experience to work at the firm, as they have peer mentors who walk step-by-step to help newcomers improve. Lots of the firm’s employees, he added, have been CCSU graduates.

“Out of the seven years I’ve been here, about seven Central alumni have been hired,” Vold said.

Another CCSU recent success story, Manny Jimenez, who graduated last December, also returned on-campus for the fair. While attending Central, Jimenez was an Edge Scholar, having his tuition paid in full through the insurance company Travelers; only a select few students in the Connecticut area were able to get this opportunity.

“Through this program, they pair you with executive mentors that are in the professional world to guide you through professional development,” he said. “In the 4 years that I was [at CCSU], I rotated in a part of the company every year.”

In doing so, Jimenez said it helped him make a rational choice in what he wanted to do within Travelers after he graduated.

Lea Krebs, a CCSU senior who double-majors in both accounting and finance attended the event for the second year. She explains that students who are seeking a career in either field should definitely come to events like this even if they’re not a senior. For Krebs, the fair taught her information about different firms, giving her more employment opportunities.

Similar to Krebs, junior Hassan Alramahi, also a double major in accounting and finance, attended the event to hopefully get a chance to gain experience. Like most college students, Alramahi fears of graduating college without any experience.

“I don’t want to get into something and not even like it,” Alramahi said. Him seeing Central alumni at the fair, he continued, gave him hope that he could achieve his goals before he graduates.

The fair is only held in the fall, so accounting and finance underclassmen should be on the lookout for the next one next year. Students can find out information about the next fair from their accounting professors or by stopping by the Robert Vance Hall Academic Center to see Marchetti.