Held on July 30 at the Taree TAFE campus, CareerQuip 2026 welcomed students from 22 regional schools alongside the general public, with organisers calling it the most successful expo to date. Taree Universities Campus CEO Donna Ballard credited the sunny weather for the improved outdoor layout, saying, "We're all feeling like it was our best one yet." The expo drew schools from as far as Wauchope, Port Macquarie, Gloucester, and Bulahdelah, and focused on immersive experiences rather than brochures, including testing working-at-heights equipment, virtual reality headsets, and interactive robots. Ballard highlighted severe local skill shortages across legal, accounting, health, teaching, engineering, and allied health sectors, aiming to curb regional brain drain by showing "all the opportunities that are available right here." One employer reported hiring two successful young recruits directly from last year's event and returned hoping to repeat the process.