For several years, our department has hosted Numbers Night, our biggest recruiting event of the year. For the first time ever, we shifted the event to the fall semester, in order to give our students a jump on building connections and interviewing for internships and jobs. The event was held on the evening of October 25^th in the Great Hall and Founders Room on Saint John’s campus.

More than 150 representatives from nearly 50 companies attended, as did a record over 400 students from 22 majors! While the biggest number of students came from accounting, finance, and global business majors, computer science and economics were also well represented, and students from the arts, humanities, and sciences also attended.

Students kicked off the night by participating in a session on effective networking before doing two hours of networking with multiple companies. Some of these discussions will lead to job and internship offers, while others will simply lead to students being better informed as they start to think about careers.

Students were effusive in their praise of the event:

John Hawkins, a first year accounting major, said: “Overall, I had a good experience at Numbers Night, and it felt good to do that as a freshman. I stopped by a handful of tables and received some cool swag in addition to learning a lot. I am still not sure what I want to do for my career, but this helped me get a good idea of where the accounting path might take me.”

Kathryn Boyer, a political science major, said: “I had thought that Numbers Night was not going to be very beneficial to me. However, after speaking with several different firms and companies, I learned that there are several opportunities within the area of law and accounting. I liked how friendly and willing to talk all the representatives were. I also liked how Bennies and Johnnies working at each company were at the booths to make a more personal connection with all the students interested in jobs, internships, or just learning more.”

Dennis Dean, a senior computer science major, said: “I was nervous about what to say to some of the workers at tables, but once I spoke to a couple of them. I got an idea of how to approach and speak to others, and which questions to ask. I liked how kind and supportive most of the workers were; they really do want the best for you, and it is seen in their tone and body language. While at the fair, I also learned that making connections and building relationships is a big part of succeeding in any part of employment and businesses in general.”

Tiegen Drontle, a first year Global Business Leadership major, said: “I have never had a chance to speak to big business reps in my life before and it was interesting to see what a ‘real world’ experience may look like. It was a little uncomfortable at first, but it didn’t take long to be brought into the fray. Everyone I talked to seemed to have confidence and care for each other, which gave me tremendous optimism for my future and Saint John’s and beyond.”

At the close of the networking session, the students were excused and the reps, many of whom were alumni, enjoyed reconnecting over homemade pizzas and cold beverages.

We heard some great comments from reps:

Sondra Glenn, Director at CliftonLarsonAllen said, “It was a great event, full of outstanding future leaders!”

Andrew Berg from North Risk Partners said, “Numbers Night was a huge success for us. Our goal was to introduce our industry to the students and gauge interest, and we left with a small pile of resumes!”

Dan Robertson, President of Kensington Bank, was a first time attender at Numbers Night. “It was a great event that far exceeded my expectations. I left the event completely energized by the conversations with these inspired students! These students are on an upward trajectory and they will benefit greatly from events like these on campus as well as being part of the strong alumni network when they leave campus.”

We have learned to be adaptable when planning this event to make it as effective as possible for our students. In 2021, we held the event virtually. During the spring of 2022, we pushed back the date until conditions improved. Next fall, we will likely hold the event in mid-September to give students even more of a head start in connecting with companies. 

At Saint Ben’s and Saint John’s, we allow students to study in a beautiful location with a tight community, but they also have access to an incredible lineup of companies!