The school’s auditorium was filled with the buzzing chatter of students interacting with recruiters. Many returning employers were present—including B&H, Canon, Deloitte, KPMG, Ohel, The Orthodox Union, Achieve Beyond, Maimonides Medical Center, Leshkowitz and Co., BKD CPA & Advisors—as well as new employers like Cross River Bank and Fasten Halberstam. More than 110 students participated in the Fair.

This marked the first time that the biannual career fair was held in Brooklyn. The fair was a joint effort between Lander College of Arts and Sciences (LAS), Lander College for Men (LCM), and New York School of Career and Applied Studies (NYSCAS).

“There’s a lot of excitement and hopefully this will lead directly to our students having opportunities to move forward in their careers.” said LAS’s Director of the Office for Student Success, Chaim Shapiro. He said that the fair had one of the largest turnouts he’s witnessed.

“I’m glad to see so many students here,” said Ron Ansel, Director of Career Services for LCM. “The house is full of students who are looking for internships that will really help them and provide a stepping stone for their future careers.”

LAS Dean Dr. Robert Goldschmidt said the fair was “extremely successful.”

“We worked hard to put together a large group of employers, both from the for-profit and non-profit sector,” he said. “It is heartening to see the work of our career services ensuring that our students are well-prepared for their interviews. It’s an excellent turn-out and a great opportunity for our students looking for professional advancement.”

Given the strong career potential of most undergraduates, it was no surprise that many of the recruiters were Touro graduates themselves.

Manning the table for accounting firm BKD CPA & Advisors was LAS graduate Aaron Shapiro, tax director for the company. He said he was impressed by the students. "They are diligent, motivated and professional," he said about the candidates he met. "There is a reason why we keep on coming back to recruit at Touro." The firm hired a full-time employee they met during last year's career fair and Shapiro said that they already have another new hire from Touro starting in September along with a Touro intern.

LAS-Flatbush alumni Michael Ament and Yehuda Fruchter conducted a steady stream of interviews for their employer, Big-4 accounting firm Deloitte. A piece of advice Ament gave to students was to send a thank-you note to interviewers. “It’s a small gesture, but it means a lot,” he counseled.

Behind the table for KPMG were two alumni from LCM, Naim Kaplan and David Kaufman. Kaplan offered his own advice to the students. “We end up spending as much time with our coworkers as we do with members of our family, so being positive and easy to work with is something we look for," said Kaplan.

Elisheva Florence, an audit manager at Fasten Halberstam, graduated from LAS in 2015 and represented her firm at the fair. “Touro prepares their students well,” she said. “I’m happy to be here and give back to the institution.”

Ariella Shamash, an accounting major at LAS, had several interviews at today’s spring career fair. "It went really well," Shamash said. Her favorite moment during one of her interviews was when she was asked to explain the economic value of auditing, a question she had prepared for. As part of the career fair, each of Touro’s undergraduate schools hold mock interviews for students and extensive resume workshops.

Lander College for Men student Nachum Krohn attended the career fair in hopes of finding an internship.  "I feel that what I learn in yeshiva gives me an advantage," said Krohn, who is studying finance. "Learning Gemara develops your analytical skills which I think is necessary for a solid business career."

LAS student Abraham Shaw, president of the school’s finance club, was looking for his second internship. Last summer, he interned at Merrill Lynch and he recently passed his first CFA exam. "It was an awesome experience," he said about his time at Merrill Lynch. "I believe I made a good impression and a kiddush Hashem."

LCM student David Hausman said he felt prepared for the interviews at the fair. He said he believed his organizational skills would help him in an accounting career. “Plus, with an accounting degree I could crossover into the world of finance,” he said.

LAS student Malka Agular was at the fair to find an internship in graphic design. “I’ve always loved art and I decided to take it further and do it professionally,” said Agular. “The program at LAS is amazing and the teachers are always making sure we have what we need.”

Accounting professor Yosef Newman was on hand to help his students before their interviews. One thing he constantly repeated to his charges was not to “underplay what they have achieved.”

“I had a student who had a summer internship and after talking with her for a while she finally told me what she did, which was remarkable,” recalled Newman. “She helped switch over the accounting firm’s software to a new tax system. I told her to stress that. When she went for an interview, she found out that her interviewer had actually designed that exact tax program.”