The Penn State Smeal College of Business has named Ashley Rippey as managing director of its Career and Corporate Connections Office.
Rippey, who graduated from Penn State in 2007 with a bachelor’s in advertising/public relations, joined Smeal in May 2014 as assistant director for professional development in Career and Corporate Connections.
The Career & Corporate Connections Office serves the undergraduate Smeal student population by preparing students for the workplace and connecting students with employers. The Office executes these two initiatives by developing and delivering professional development programming, engaging students in one-on-one career coaching appointments, providing leadership opportunities in 40+ Smeal Student Organizations, facilitating corporate engagement opportunities and events, organizing business-specific career fairs, managing the Smeal Connect internship/co-op posting board, and hosting on-campus interviews.
“The managing director of Career and Corporate Connections is an important position for our undergraduate population and to the core mission of Smeal,” said Jeff Sharp, associate dean for undergraduate education.
“A business school’s relevance is partly driven by how well it prepares students beyond the classroom for their first destinations following graduation. Our Career and Corporate Connections team fosters great relationships with our corporate partners while building professionalism skills and experiences in our students. Ashley brings a strong and diverse skill-set to this leadership position. We’re excited to have her on board to continue the excellent work that office has consistently produced for our students and partners.”
Shortly after graduation, Rippey began working in marketing and public relations before switching gears to pursue her master’s in school counseling at the University of Scranton. She spent four years in college admissions, including two years at Penn State’s World Campus as the lead business-to-business counselor.
“I look forward to continuing to expand our reach by implementing new interactive, online career resources, strategizing ways to reach Commonwealth Campus students before they transition to Smeal, developing new opportunities for smaller or “niche” companies to interact with our students, and better preparing students not just for placement, but for continued success in the workplace post-placement,” she said.