Bells Are Ringing for Tampa’s Director of Career Services

“Placing students is one of the most rewarding jobs anyone can have.” 

From the first moment you speak with Deborah Hoffman, Director of Career Services at Remington College – Tampa Campus, you know she means business.

And her business is to help Tampa college graduates get hired in their chosen career field.

But Ms. Hoffman, or “Deb” as she prefers to be called, has come to mean much more than placement assistance to the students and graduates of our Tampa Campus. She has also come to represent hope, new beginnings, and resourcefulness to her students, graduates, and coworkers.

From Largo to Tampa Bay
Deb’s career with Remington College started in 2003, with a position in the Career Services Department at our Largo Campus. She came to that Campus with a strong background in non-traditional schools and almost 10 years of experience working with students and graduates.

When the Largo Campus closed, Deb transferred to our Tampa Campus. There, she has immersed herself in the day-to-day lives of her students, with the knowledge that they will one day need her help:

“Let’s face it: A student’s relationship with the Career Services Department is going to be extremely important after graduation. I work on developing good relationships with students before they graduate so that we can continue to have that same good relationship when it’s time for them to seek employment. When they need us the most, they’ll know where to turn.”

A Personal Mission to Change Lives
Deb takes each graduate’s situation, personality, and background into consideration when attempting to place him or her. And she works diligently to ensure that she can make a difference in the lives of Remington College – Tampa Campus graduates:

“I think many folks are struggling to find employment in today’s economy, but I believe some of my success comes from refusing to wait for jobs to be posted online or in the newspaper. I am the ‘queen’ of finding online sites that list the fax numbers or email addresses of local businesses. I cold-fax an average of 150 sites a week and regularly get interviews and placements for our graduates from doing so. If I can get the résumés into the businesses, then I’m halfway there!”

The Keys to Success and Job Satisfaction
Deb also credits the drive and determination of her coworkers and the graduates themselves: “Tampa Career Services Representative Doug Strickland and I work diligently to place our graduates. We bring local employers to tour the Campus, and they mention openings that they have or that are coming up. We also attend local job fairs to obtain information and contacts for potential jobs.

And when graduates see how hard Doug and I are working for them, almost all of them respond by working equally hard to be prepared for interviews, maintain their résumés, follow up on our suggestions, and work to find jobs.”

Pride in Remington College and Tampa Campus Graduates
During Deb’s eight years of employment with Remington College, she has helped to place several hundred graduates into their chosen career fields.

She said, “It warms my heart when students or graduates call to tell me that they ‘got the job.’ I hear the excitement in their voices and know that they are truly on the road to a new life. I have a bell in my office that I ring every time a graduate gets a job in their career field – and I live to ring that bell.”

Deb summed up her tenure with Remington College and her feelings about our institution and its students by saying:

“I’m proud to be an employee of Remington College. I have worked for several other non-traditional schools over the years, and Remington College is an example of what a good career college is supposed to be. We confirm every placement and check everything that our accrediting body says we should, and we have earned our right to be an accredited career college. Also, it’s hard to find a place where you like everyone you work with, and the Tampa Campus is that place for me.”