Sacramento State’s Accounting Society and Beta Alpha Psi are holding an introductory job fair from 6 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. on April 26 in the University Union Ballroom III.

In addition to the prospective employers that will attend, a discussion panel and a question and answer session are part of the event.

Senior accounting major and society member Yasmin West said that the “Informational Job Fair” is mainly designed for community college students interested in accounting as a career path who don’t have access to the type of information that will be available.

Area community colleges are publicizing the event, which also will provide networking opportunities, on their campuses, West said.

Sacramento State accounting students who aren’t already involved in the Accounting Society and those leaning toward an accounting major are encouraged to attend as well, West said.

This is the third consecutive semester that the student organizations, with some financing from Associated Students Inc. have staged the job fair and, based on past fairs, West said she expects approximately 200 students to attend.

Some of the accounting firms, government agencies and other companies that will be dispensing information and searching for potential employees include Ernst and Young, KPMG, Price-Waterhouse-Cooper, the Franchise Tax Board, The IRS, Moss Adams, Intel and Enterprise Rent-A-Car, according to West.

James Williams, a senior accountant specializing in audits at Ernst and Young, a tax expert from Moss Adams and a representative from Intel are the panelists who will discuss which industries offer job possibilities for accounting grads, West said.

The speakers also will share career experiences and tips for succeeding in the field, according to a prepared statement from the Accounting Society.

West said she would deliver a short presentation about the definitions of industry jargon, the differences between government and private accounting opportunities, and the nuances of tax accounting and audit accounting.

West said the job fair is going to become an annual event, so one will not be held next semester, because putting on the affair is a drain on the resources of the student groups and the time of the individuals involved.

But she said that the “Meet the Firms” job event, which is only open to Accounting Society and Beta Alpha Psi members, will still be held every semester.

Norm Erickson can be reached at [email protected]