On Feb. 28, the All Ivy Environmental and Sustainable Development Career Fair marked its 11th year. The eight Ivy League schools—Brown, Cornell, Columbia, Dartmouth, Harvard, Princeton, the University of Pennsylvania and Yale—teamed up once again to host the fair at Columbia University in New York City. This year’s event attracted 69 recruiting organizations, and more than 900 students and alumni. For students in Columbia University’s M.S. in Sustainability Management program, the fair was an opportunity to meet with both sustainability-focused employers and more than a few familiar faces from the program.
The fair was particularly productive for students in the M.S. in Sustainability Management program, who had the opportunity to interact with recruiters who also happened to be program alumni. “To have the opportunity to meet with recruiters who are also program alumni was invaluable—they know our program and they know the unique skills that we can bring to these positions,” said student Aditi Kolhekar.
“It was so great to be a part of the All-Ivy Career Fair on the recruiting side of the table,” said Jenelle Hoffman, the project manager for CodeGreen Solutions and a 2013 graduate of the M.S. in Sustainability Management program. “The students this year thoroughly impressed me with their expansive experience and well-rounded resumes. I spoke with phenomenal candidates ranging from undergraduates holding internships with the Clinton Initiative, to master’s students with 10-plus years of experience in the efficiency operations industry, to individuals just beginning their job search. It was so rewarding to see so many young and talented individuals ready to dive head first into the sustainability industry.”
Throughout the day, the auditorium was packed with students eager to introduce themselves to recruiters. M.S. in Sustainability Management alumnus Jason Prince (’13) was thrilled with his experience as a recruiter for Karbone: “As a graduate of an Earth Institute education program, I was proud to meet such high caliber students with academic backgrounds so well catered to the businesses of energy and sustainability. Moreover, the fair proved a remarkably effective recruiting exercise for Karbone, as we left with some great potential matches.”
MSSM alums recruiting at the All-Ivy Environmental and Sustainable Development Career Fair included:
- Scott Andrews, Terrapin Bright Green
- Emily Dawson, Dewberry
- JD Capuano, Sami Abbay, Ryan Meinke, Closed Loop Advisors
- Jenelle Hoffman, CodeGreen Solutions
- Jason Prince, Karbone
- Matt Codner, Genesys Global
Since the career fair’s inception, thousands of students from a diverse array of environmental and sustainability fields of study— with focuses on engineering, management, science and communication among others—have connected with representatives from organizations across sectors. Over the past eleven years, the Ivies have collaborated to bring organizations together with highly qualified undergraduate, graduate and Ph.D. level students who have the multi-faceted, practical skills necessary to address the complex sustainability challenges facing our global economy.
A list of the 2014 All-Ivy Career Fair recruiting organizations that attended this year, as well as the academic programs that participated in the All-Ivy Career Fair’s online promotional opportunities, can be found here.
For more information about the All-Ivy Environmental and Sustainable Development Career Fair, contact Natalie Unwin-Kuruneri, associate director of education at The Earth Institute at natalie@ei.columbia.edu.
The M.S. in Sustainability Management, co-sponsored by the Earth Institute and Columbia’s School of Continuing Education, trains students to tackle complex and pressing environmental and managerial challenges. The program requires the successful completion of 36 credit points. Those credit points are divided among five comprehensive content areas: integrative sustainability management, economics and quantitative analysis, the physical dimensions of sustainability, the public policy environment of sustainability management, and general and financial management. Visit our website to learn more.
