Diversity Recruiting

The Smeal academic community is made up of students from a variety of backgrounds with unique talents and the drive to succeed. Whether you are looking to hire for internships or full-time placements, or are interested in sponsorship opportunities with diversity-related programs within the college, the Office of Diversity Enhancement Programs will help connect you to the many diversity initiatives available through Smeal.

There are a number of ways for your company to access underrepresented students and support diversity-related programs at Smeal:

Partner with Smeal student organizations: Corporate recruiters can work with a number of student organizations at Smeal by providing guidance on programming and helping to organize and sponsor events. This type of interaction gives companies the opportunity to network with potential recruits and provide mentorship.

Striving Toward Awareness and Respect for Tomorrow (S.T.A.R.T.) Conference: S.T.A.R.T. is a student-run diversity conference open to the entire Penn State community. Companies who contribute to the S.T.A.R.T. conference are asked to present a workshop on diversity topics. Corporations may also contribute funds to help offset the costs of the conference, and also provide scholarships to essay contest winners, or education abroad scholarships to diversity students.

Powerful Women Paving the Way (PWPW) Conference:  Hosted by Smeal’s Women in Business student organization, PWPW is open to the entire Penn State community and beyond, to include students, faculty, staff, alumni, and professionals. Each year it brings students and professionals together from various industries and background that share a passion for business and the drive for success. Companies have the opportunity to support the conference in a variety of ways, to include financial sponsorship, participation in the breakout session panels, the ability to submit requests for keynote consideration product donations and raffle basket contributions (all raffle funds raised are contributed to a charitable organization).

BOSS Summer Program: This two-week summer institute for rising high school juniors introduces them to the rigors of college academics and the admissions process. Companies can choose to lead a workshop during the program, schedule corporate office visits with program participants, and/or help contribute to the costs of running the program.

MBA Diversity Recruitment: Corporate recruiters interested in providing internships and/or full-time placement opportunities to our students should contact Jamie Campbell, Assistant Dean for Diversity Enhancement Programs, or Paul Poissant, Director of MBA Employer Relations..

Besides these involvement opportunities, the Office of Diversity Enhancement Programs will work with companies to arrange and plan other events to showcase companies. Examples include information sessions, supporting emergency funds for student organizations, and sponsoring events such as case competitions.