| Trouble viewing this email? Read it online. |
| March 2026 | Career Center |
|
On Thursday, February 12, the Career Center hosted the 9th Annual Diversity Works Expo & Awards. More than 100 students came out to celebrate the student awardees, hear a fireside chat between Bria Alexander and Dr. Brett Solomon, and network with dozens of employer representatives from a diverse range of inclusive companies including event sponsors Enterprise Mobility.
What attendees are saying: "The Diversity Works Expo exceeded my expectations with the large amount of students and faculty involved in helping create community and provide a space where individuals can be their authentic selves. The students, faculty and guests were so engaging, supportive and made the experience worthwhile. I'm happy to have attended." — "This was my first Diversity Works event and it was so inspiring and exceeded any expectations I had. The event was well organized and I loved how engaging it was. The reverse career fair was a new experience for me as well and I really enjoyed hearing about all the different organizations. What an amazing night! Kudos SCU Career Center for hosting a wonderful event!" — Curious to learn more about Diversity Works? Email Melissa Thiriez at mthiriez@scu.edu. As always, I look forward to working together to deliver on the promise of higher education for all of our students: a good job, social capital, and economic mobility in pursuit of a more humane, just and sustainable world.
◾ ◾ ◾ ◾ ◾ ◾ ◾ ◾ ◾ ◾ ◾ ◾ ◾ ◾ Career Center Partners with ACE Program to Host 2nd Annual Mock Interview Event
On Tuesday, January 21, Noël Kreidler, Associate Director of Career Development, and Mary Saetern, Assistant Director of Employer Relations partnered with Moira Kolasinski, Interim Director of Leadership Development and Engagement in the Leavey School of Business, to host a Mock Interview workshop for two dozen students in the Accelerated Cooperative Education (ACE) program.
Company representatives/recruiters from a wide variety of companies graciously agreed to interview students for mock internship roles in management, accounting, finance and marketing. Questions about the ACE Mock Interview program? Email Noël Kreidler at skreidler@scu.edu. ◾ ◾ ◾ ◾ ◾ ◾ ◾ ◾ ◾ ◾ ◾ ◾ ◾ ◾ Winter Internships Fair Draws 500+ Students
On Tuesday, February 3, the Career Center welcomed 30 dynamic organizations such as AlphaSights, Enterprise Mobility, KLA, Uniqlo and many more to our inaugural Winter Internships Fair. More than 500 students participated.
This was the first time since 2019 that the Career Center hosted an in-person winter fair. We are thrilled to share that it was a huge success! Here is what companies are saying: Everyone was very accommodating, nice, and thoughtful; the students were great and professional. The staff members were amazing and made this experience wonderful, and I hope to participate in future's job/career fairs! 👍 Very well organized, good turnout of promising candidates and the cost was affordable for us as a nonprofit. 👍 Here is what students are saying: I really enjoyed how interactive everyone was. I even met some classmates during the career fair and started walking with them. 👍 I liked how recruiters were open to questions and that they gave really good advice for people who wanted to start working. 👍 Congratulations to Mary Saetern, Assistant Director of Employer Relations, for taking lead on your first career fair! And thank you to all of the Career Center staff for supporting this successful event. Questions about the Winter Internships Fair? Email Mary Saetern at msaetern@scu.edu. ◾ ◾ ◾ ◾ ◾ ◾ ◾ ◾ ◾ ◾ ◾ ◾ ◾ ◾ ◾ Career Center, Ciocca Center Team Up to Host Startups Meetup
On Tuesday, February 10, the Career Center and Ciocca Center partnered to host our annual Startups Meetup featuring 12 early-stage startups across AI, real estate tech, health tech, climate, fintech, consumer, and cybersecurity, all of which connected with students and shared internship and full-time opportunities.
Photos taken from the SCU Ciocca Center LinkedIn page. Congratulations to Mary Saetern, Assistant Director of Employer Relations, and Cindy Cooper, Cristina Cismas Florea and entire Bronco Venture Accelerator (BVA) community for hosting an amazing event! Questions about the Startups Meetup? Email Mary Saetern at msaetern@scu.edu. ◾ ◾ ◾ ◾ ◾ ◾ ◾ ◾ ◾ ◾ ◾ ◾ ◾ ◾ Student-Alumni Mentorship Program Hosts Meetup at Women's Basketball Game
On Thursday, February 26, the Student-Alumni Mentorship Program, led by Shauna Strauss, Assistant Director of Career Development, hosted an end-of-program meetup at the women's basketball game vs University of Pacific. Mentors and mentees came together to catch up with one another, cheer on the Broncos, and even get on the court to throw some free-throws!
The Student-Alumni Mentorship Program for students in the arts, humanities and social sciences is one of six main initiatives that is helping to advance Impact 2030's "Belonging for All Broncos" priority. (View the Impact 2030 dashboard.) Questions about the Student-Alumni Mentorship Program? Email Shauna Strauss at sstrauss@scu.edu. ◾ ◾ ◾ ◾ ◾ ◾ ◾ ◾ ◾ ◾ ◾ ◾ ◾ ◾ Student Spotlight: Leah Andersen '27
Leah Andersen '27 is a Management major and Retail Studies minor who has found career success by using the many resources Santa Clara has to offer. We invited Leah to share her reflections for our Student Spotlight series. What advice would you give to students who may be curious or nervous about using the Career Center? The Career Center is a tool every student should be using. They are there to support us, and in a time when finding entry-level jobs and internships can be especially challenging, it’s an invaluable resource. The staff are incredibly helpful and genuinely want to see students succeed, there’s truly nothing to be intimidated by. How has the Career Center helped you achieve your career goals? The Assistant Director in the Career Center, Mary Saetern, reached out to me about a networking event with AIG. I was fortunate to be selected to attend and was even invited back for interviews. It was an incredible opportunity to build connections in an industry I had never previously considered but quickly found fascinating. Through this experience, I learned about commercial insurance, AIG’s company culture, and the people who work there. Overall, it opened my eyes to new career paths and professional opportunities. Leah, thank you for sharing your story and congratulations on all you are accomplishing here at Santa Clara! ◾ ◾ ◾ ◾ ◾ ◾ ◾ ◾ ◾ ◾ ◾ ◾ ◾ ◾ Student Spotlight: Ethan Lynch '29
Ethan Lynch '29, is a Finance major and Math minor who has found career confidence by using the many resources Santa Clara has to offer. As Ethan prepares to finish his first year at Santa Clara, we invited him to share his reflections for our Student Spotlight series. What advice would you give to students who may be curious or nervous about using the Career Center? Be proactive, even if you're not prepared. If you never try, you'll never find out. How has the Career Center helped you achieve your career goals? The Career Center gives me access to professionals that I normally wouldn't have access to. This allows me to learn more about people's experiences with business in the real world. Ethan, kudos to you for getting an early start on accomplishing your career goals! ◾ ◾ ◾ ◾ ◾ ◾ ◾ ◾ ◾ ◾ ◾ ◾ ◾ ◾ Melissa Thiriez joins Board of the American Association for Employer Relations (A+)
The Career Center is proud to share that Melissa Thiriez, Director of Employer Relations and Partnerships, has been named to the board of directors of A+ | American Association for Employer Relations. In this role, Melissa will join a national group of leaders from organizations like Handshake, Silicon Valley Leadership Group (SVLG), Loyola Marymount University and others in helping to shape the future of employer relations.
Melissa shared this reflection on LinkedIn: When I started in Employer Relations six years ago, it often felt like we were operating in a silo. I spent a lot of time searching for models of how to actually bridge the gap between "getting a degree" and "getting a job." I’m joining A+ because they treat this work as a collaborative science rather than an afterthought. We’re focused on creating actual employment outcomes by connecting the dots between universities/community colleges, employers, and public workforce organizations. Congratulations, Melissa! The field of employer relations will benefit greatly from your thought leadership in this important role. Questions about A+? Email Melissa Thiriez at mthiriez@scu.edu. ◾ ◾ ◾ ◾ ◾ ◾ ◾ ◾ ◾ ◾ ◾ ◾ ◾ ◾ ◾ Congratulations and Farewell to Colleen Withers
It is with very mixed emotions that I share that Colleen Withers, Director of Career Development and Campus Integration, is resigning from the Career Center to relocate to Austin, Texas with her family. Her last day will be Monday, June 1.
Colleen first joined the Santa Clara community as a member of the Leavey School of Business' Graduate Business Career Management team in February 2019. Then, in February 2023, she joined the Career Center as the inaugural Director of Career Development and Campus Integration. She has made many significant contributions in her 3+ years in the role. Under Colleen's leadership, she and her team launched new signature programs like the Bay Area A.I. Industry Immersion, the Career Clarity Retreat, the Recent Grad Job Search Program, and the Student-Alumni Mentor Program. She has greatly expanded the number of students served by hiring graduate-level career development interns, starting weekly Resume Refresh events, and introducing peer-led daily walk-in hours. And she has helped define the office culture in so many ways through potlucks, team walks, stay interviews, and more. The Career Center—and Santa Clara University—have greatly benefited from Colleen's steady and pragmatic leadership, positive attitude, empathy and advocacy. As a testament to her impact, please read this student testimonial: Colleen is hands down the best Career Coach I have ever had at SCU. ... She knew exactly what I was asking for, what I needed to change on my resume or application approach, and what certain job descriptions or applications meant and how to hack them. She knows what she's doing and is incredibly helpful and encouraging. SCU is very VERY lucky to have her... Colleen genuinely seems like she wants you to succeed and gives you all of the tools she has to do that. Colleen will leave the Career Center and the Career Development team very well positioned for continued impact. She wished to share this note: Thank you to the warm and welcoming Santa Clara University community for all your support over the last 7+ years. SCU will always have a special place in my heart as the catalyst for my professional pivot into higher education career services! Special shoutout to the Career Center team for all the fun we've had and everything we’ve accomplished! I’ll be moving to Austin, TX this summer. Follow me on LinkedIn and don’t be a stranger. http://linkedin.com/ Colleen, we wish you and your family all the best as you begin this new chapter! Please feel free to send a note directly to Colleen at cwithers@scu.edu and/or leave a nice message on Kudoboard. ◾ ◾ ◾ ◾ ◾ ◾ ◾ ◾ ◾ ◾ ◾ ◾ ◾ ◾ ◾ Career News and Hot Topics From Around the Web
What 2025 Taught Us About the Labor MarketHandshake Internship Experience Often the Deciding Factor Between Equal CandidatesNational Association of Colleges and Employers First Jobs Matter More Than We ThinkThe Atlantic An Institutional Career Learning Pledge (feat. Oakland University)The Career Ecosystem Era in Higher Education Podcast ◾ ◾ ◾ ◾ ◾ ◾ ◾ ◾ ◾ ◾ ◾ ◾ ◾ ◾ Not just the Career Center... your Career Center! Questions, concerns, ideas, suggestions?
|
| Home |