Job fair to connect seekers with more than 90 employers
STATE COLLEGE — In a county where opportunity is knocking but employers are still searching for the right people to answer, the upcoming Centre County Spring Job Fair is shaping up to be more than just a hiring event. It’s a chance to connect, reset and maybe even rethink what a career can look like.
Set for Thursday, April 23, from 1 to 4 p.m. at C3 Sports in State College, the job fair is expected to feature more than 90 employers spanning industries from healthcare and manufacturing to hospitality, transportation and emerging technology sectors.
“There’s a huge demand from employers across various industries who are actively looking for and hiring candidates with the right skills,” said Rachel Ulmer, site administrator for PA CareerLink Centre County. “With events like this job fair, we connect job seekers with the training and the skills they need to match them with the right employer.”
In Centre County, the challenge isn’t a lack of jobs. It’s finding people to fill them. Todd Dolbin, vice president of economic development for the Chamber of Business and Industry of Centre County, said the county’s unemployment rate sits around 2.7%, well below what economists typically consider healthy.
“With such a low unemployment rate, the challenge isn’t jobs, it’s finding the people to fill them,” Dolbin said.
That reality has helped reshape the job fair into something broader than a traditional hiring event. Organizers say it’s become a community gathering point where employers can showcase not just open positions, but long-term career paths. Where job seekers can step out from behind online applications and meet face-to-face.
“It’s difficult to get in front of a real person,” Dolbin said. “This is a great opportunity to actually talk to someone, learn about the company and share a little about yourself.”
The industries in highest demand reflect both national trends and local needs. Healthcare continues to lead the way, followed closely by manufacturing, skilled trades and hospitality, especially as the region heads into the busy tourism season.
But this year’s event also aims to shine a light on something many residents may not even realize exists in their backyard: a growing cluster of sensor technology companies.
“We have a really strong concentration of those businesses here in the area,” Dolbin said. “We’re calling it ‘Sensor Valley’ … it’s an emerging, innovative industry that touches everything from healthcare to agriculture to manufacturing.”
For job seekers, the advice from both Ulmer and Dolbin is simple: come prepared.
“Preparation for a job fair of this caliber is really important,” Ulmer said. “Be prepared to discuss your skills and the benefits that you can bring to an employer.”
That preparation can be as straightforward as reviewing the list of attending employers ahead of time, identifying a few target companies and developing what Ulmer calls a “30-second elevator speech”, which is a quick, confident way to introduce yourself and your strengths.
Dolbin echoed that approach.
“Do your homework,” he said. “It shows you’re serious, that you’re knowledgeable and that you have an interest. That really makes you stand out.”
The event is also expanding its reach to younger job seekers. For the first time, the State College and Bellefonte Area school districts will be sending students by bus, giving juniors and seniors a firsthand look at the local workforce and potential career paths.
Organizers hope that move helps turn the job fair into something lasting and not just a one-day event, but an annual tradition.
“We want to make this a well-known annual community event,” Dolbin said. “So everybody in Centre County knows that every April is the Centre County Job Fair.”
Behind the scenes, the effort is a collaboration between PA CareerLink, the CBICC, the Borough of State College and Centre County Government. It’s a partnership aimed at strengthening both the workforce and the community itself.
And for anyone who’s ever doubted where they fit or wondered if their skills translate beyond the job they’ve always known, Ulmer said this is exactly the place to start.
“You don’t always have to stick to the industry that you’re used to,” she said. “You may have a skill that you learned in one industry and apply it to another.”
In a county full of opportunity, sometimes all it takes is a conversation to open the next door.
