Site visits offer a unique opportunity to tour employer offices with a small group of peers and gain insider knowledge about the industry directly from the professionals within the organization.
The Career Exploration Summit (CES) is a virtual opportunity for undergraduates to explore and engage with alumni in brand name companies across various industries. The program will feature a series of 90-minute alumni panels across three days where students will have the opportunity to connect with alumni to explore careers while developing skills alongside a cohort of fellow Columbia students.
Lionsbridge is a finance boot camp, a free three-day in-person workshop designed to introduce Columbia first- and second-year students to the world of finance and to prepare them for internships and career opportunities. This academic year, the program will occur from January 14 to January 16, 2026.
The Pritzker Pucker Trailblazers Program enables Columbia undergraduate students to undertake paid internships in the arts, culture, media, and technology supported by alumni and employer partners. Program participants also receive professional development from CCE career counselors and mentoring from Columbia alumni.
Start where you are. Career Skills Workshops led by CCE and employer partners help you learn practical steps for effective engagement with employers and alumni, and guide you through the internship/job and graduate school search process.
LionSHARE, powered by Handshake, is your hub for career connections and opportunities—exclusive to students and alumni served by the Center for Career Education (CCE).
No two job or internship searches will look exactly alike. In creating your search strategy, you’ll want to build in time for research, planning, polishing your professional image, and relationship-building, in addition to applying, interviewing, and following up.
CCE regularly hears from employers who have interviewed Columbia students and alumni for positions at their organizations. We gather this feedback so that we can better inform and prepare you for interviews and the job search. In a Recent survey, Columbia...
A “gap year” is a common way that recent graduates gain practical experience, explore a new industry or personal interest, travel, and prepare for graduate school exams before going to graduate school.
On-Campus Recruiting is designed to provide students the opportunity to attend employer information sessions and participate in on-campus interviews. Information sessions are a great way for students to learn more about an organization and its opportunities, as well as network with Columbia...
How do you figure out which career is right for you? Self-assessment is the first step. The more you understand yourself and your motivations, the more informed and productive your career search process will be.
You’ve generated a store of self-knowledge about your identities, interests, values, personality traits, and skills through our Explore activities or your reflection. Now, how do you connect this information to career options—specific industries, job functions, and organizations you might be interested in?
We invite you to speak with a career counselor about how to best utilize the below resources to craft a strategic plan for your Non-Profit/Social Justice career exploration and job search.Identifying Social...
As a career changer there are many important factors you may consider. Here are some resources and tips to help navigate your transition. Career Assessments
Informational interviews are a great way to learn about a career field of interest to you, build your network, and connect with professionals in an industry.
This spring, the Center for Career Education hosted a series of industry spotlights and recruiting showcases. Explore participating employers and key takeaways in this In the Know post.
This fall, Columbia’s Center for Career Education (CCE) launched Ask an Alum, a new event series designed to connect students with alumni for candid conversations about career paths, industry insights, and the transition from college to professional life. The Fall 2025 semester featured: Ask an Alum: Law & Government and Ask an Alum: Startups & Entrepreneurship.
Timing is everything when it comes to recruiting! This guide helps break down what you can expect across different industries and sectors, so you can plan ahead.
Over spring break, 20 Columbia students traveled to Washington, D.C., for a week of professional exploration through CCE’s Spring Site Visit Program. This immersive experience enabled students to connect with professionals across seven organizations spanning industries like finance, policy, technology, and the arts. Read on for an overview of the cohort's experience in DC.
Over spring break, 76 Columbia students visited 11 employers across New York City through the Spring Site Visit Program (SVP). This program gives students a firsthand look at what it’s like to work at employers across industries. Read on for key takeaways from each New York City site visit!
From March 16 to March 21, 2025, a cohort of 24 undergraduates explored professional opportunities in San Francisco and the Bay Area as part of the Site Visit Program. Throughout the week, students learned about industry trends, heard directly from alumni about their career journeys, and got a sense of work culture on the West Coast. Read on for key takeaways from the sites we visited, including employer advice and student reactions.
On February 27, 2025, the Center for Career Education (CCE) held our annual Tech Connect: Student-Alumni Networking Night! Almost 100 students came together with 11 alumni at various stages of careers in tech to engage in meaningful conversation. Read this recap of the evening.
This spring, Columbia University’s Center for Career Education (CCE) partnered with Chris McGowan CC’92 to launch Lionsbridge, a program designed to introduce undergraduates to the world of finance. The pilot cohort welcomed 52 students from across Columbia's three undergraduate schools. Read on for employer advice, student takeaways, and an overview of the program.
On Thursday, March 6, 2025, the Center for Career Education (CCE) hosted employers at an industry showcase focused on career opportunities in advertising including in business, marketing, creative design, and technology. Representatives from GroupM, Part and Sum, and BBDO Operations showcased their companies and the ways that students from many majors can find paths into the industry.
On March 4, 2025, CCE hosted a Law & International Affairs Industry Showcase. CCE Peer Ambassador Andrew Chung CC '27 offers an overview of the event and shares some key takeaways from the employer presentations.
On January 30, 2025, CCE hosted a Capital Markets Industry Showcase. CCE Peer Ambassador Andrew Chung CC '27 offers an overview of the event and shares some key takeaways from the alumni panel.
On November 14, 2024, a group of Columbia undergraduate students visited Major League Soccer (MLS), the governing body for the premier professional soccer league in North America. A panel session of MLS staff shared their career journeys, roles, responsibilities, and favorite memories and projects.
On November 20, 2024, a group of Columbia undergraduate students visited Rokt, a dynamic e-commerce company that has redefined the online shopping experience. Read on for an overview of Rokt’s approach, values, and culture, and for student reflections on the site visit experience.
The Center for Career Education (CCE) is excited to announce the completion of another successful application cycle for the Work Exemption Program (WEP) for the Fall 2024 semester. As an enhancement to financial aid for undergraduate students in Columbia College and Columbia Engineering, the WEP program provides Columbia Grants to support eligible students’ pursuit of unpaid internships, research projects, and community outreach.
During the Center for Career Education’s trip to Chicago this summer, Senior Associate Director of Employer and Alumni Relations Karla Puga had the opportunity to connect with two Columbia alumni: Collin Woldt, a paralegal at Kirkland & Ellis, and Robert Mosher, partner and co-owner of the Michelin-star restaurant Monteverde. Karla spoke with Collin and Robert about their career paths, experiences working and living in Chicago, and advice for current students and recent graduates.
This summer, CCE’s Karla Puga, Senior Associate Director of Alumni and Employer Relations, visited Chicago to learn more about career paths and opportunities in the Windy City. Read on for a blog post from Karla sharing her experiences and highlighting key takeaways.
This summer, CCE’s Employer & Alumni Relations Team traveled coast to coast, visiting major cities to discover career opportunities for students. Jazmin Lesane traveled to Seattle, Washington, a hub of innovation, technology, and social impact! Read on for her key takeaways.
This summer, CCE’s Employer & Alumni Relations Team is hitting the road again to explore careers, industries, and employers across the country! First on the intinerary is Bianca Bryson’s trip to Atlanta, Georgia.
Over spring break, 104 Columbia students visited 12 employers across New York City through the Site Visit Program. This program gives students a firsthand look at what it’s like to work at employers across industries. Read on for key takeaways from each site visit.
This spring break, Columbia University’s Center for Career Education (CCE) offered students a remarkable opportunity to explore the professional landscapes of San Francisco through its Site Visit Program.
On Wednesday March 20, 2024, the Center for Career Education (CCE) invited undergraduate students and recent alumni interested in careers in technology, entrepreneurship, and business to participate in the Spring 2024 Mobile Apps and Gaming Industry Showcase. Representatives from 2K , Bantr...
On Thursday, February 29, 2024, the Center for Career Education (CCE) hosted our Policy & Politics Industry Showcase: an exploratory event geared towards students interested in areas such as government agencies, think tanks, NGOs, and legal organizations. Representatives from the US Department...
On Monday, February 26, 2024, the Center for Career Education (CCE) hosted the Consulate General of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in New York for a Design Your Next Steps workshop on Exploring International Careers & Visas. CCE was joined by Homeyra Abrishamkar, Advisor International Startups...
On Wednesday, February 7, 2024, the Center for Career Education (CCE) invited undergraduate students and recent alumni interested in careers in arts, sports, and entertainment to participate in the Spring 2024 Arts and Entertainment Industry Showcase. Representatives from Endeavor – WME , New York...
On November 14, 2023, the Center for Career Education (CCE) invited undergraduate students and recent alumni interested in careers in fashion and lifestyle to participate in the Fall 2023 Fashion and Lifestyle Industry Showcase. Representatives from Christian Dior , COTY , EssilorLuxottica , FlexIt...
On October 11, 2023, the Center for Career Education (CCE) invited undergraduate students and recent alumni interested in careers in social impact, government, non-profit, education, and more to participate in the Fall 2023 Civic & Community Engagement Showcase! Representatives from FEMA Region...
On September 27, 2023 CCE hosted a Sustainability Industry Showcase event for students who are interested in sustainability, environmentalism, and corporate social responsibility.
This summer, Andrew Knutson (Executive Director of Employer and Alumni Relations) and Bianca Bryson (Program Manager, Employer Relations) journeyed out west to Los Angeles to meet with employers working in the media, entertainment, and arts industries.
This summer, Marissa Green (Associate Director of Employer and Alumni Relations) journeyed to Austin, Texas to meet with employers working in Tech, Startups and more!
The CCE Spring Break Site Visit Program has returned! Last held in 2019, this program offers undergraduate students the opportunity to tour employer offices and gain insider knowledge about an industry directly from the professionals within an organization. Over the course of three days during...
On February 8, 2023, the Center for Career Education (CCE) invited undergraduate students and recent alumni interested in careers in social impact, government, non-profit, education and more to participate in the 2023 Impact + Policy Showcase ! Representatives from FEMA , Partners for Justice ,...
How to Apply Humanities Mindsets to Your Career Development By Sarah Goldberg, Undergraduate Career Development We’ve talked in previous posts about how to leverage humanities skills like close reading and persuasion in your job search. A session I attended at the Modern Language Association...
Graduate school often comes up indirectly in our one-on-one career counseling appointments with students. Yet we often find that when we offer further support on graduate school planning, students are often surprised that we advise on this topic. So we thought that it would be helpful to share a...
While the job search is unique to each individual, tools like LinkedIn and LionSHARE optimize your job search — enabling you to find job or internship postings, research companies, engage with professionals in your field of interest and apply for relevant jobs.
By Joanna Bubilek , Assistant Director, Employer and Alumni Relations In the past months, the whole world has had to pause and adapt to the new circumstances caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. No country, industry, or person was left uneffected, and now more than ever, the word “resilience” matters...
Relationships are essential, both in and out of work. Now more than ever the world is feeling the need for and the power of relationships. Understanding the relationships in your world of work is an important step towards being an effective worker. Each relationship that you have, has key aspects...
Where might your Columbia English major take you? Read on for insight from panelists at the English open house, as well as questions for reflection as you explore your career interests.
By PETE BRIDGE In November, we traveled to Durham and Raleigh, North Carolina to connect with employers from the biotech, startup, and healthcare spaces in the region. These conversations focused on the value of connecting to these organizations even though they aren’t located in the NYC area...
Let’s Talk About A Career In Marketing and Social Media By Grace Huntley , Communications and Event Management So you’ve seen marketing or social media internships or jobs advertised, but never been sure what the ROI really is. Or you’re just not convinced why you should spend...
These 5 Tips Can Help You Start Planning Your First Summer Our Spring 2019 Summer Planning for First-Years series kicked off with a student panel the first Friday of classes. Moderated by panel alumna Amaris Benavidez (SEAS ‘19), the panel featured Kai Morsink (CC ‘19), Giselle Valdez (CC ‘20),...
Your Social Science Research and Analysis Skills Can Help You Find the Right Job For You By Tracy McGarry , Undergraduate Career Development Your skills as a social scientist can help you not only on the job, but also in evaluating and securing a job that is right for you! Here’s how you can...
This fall the Consulate General of Canada in New York came to our campus to speak to our undergraduate and graduate students as well as French speakers on campus about Canada’s Express Entry opportunities.
On October 17th, we hosted an amazing panel of five alumni who shared their experiences being out in the workplace. Sitara Herur, a GS student and leader within the LGBTQ student community at Columbia, moderated the panel. The panel was followed by a networking event with additional alumni joining...
The snowstorm didn’t stop us! The OMA lounge in Lerner was full of students and we dug into delicious hot food together as we waited for our alumni, who battled train delays and biting winds to join us. Arame Mbodj of the Center for Career Education moderated the panel of international alumni...
If writing puts you in the zone and helps you clarify your thoughts, think about tapping into this talent for exploring career possibilities. Here’s a short list of our favorite writing activities to start creating your career story.
On Monday, October 29 th , CCE, First-In-Family Programs, the Academic Success Program, and FLIP co-sponsored an event called Telling Your Story as a First Generation or Low-Income Student – Alumni Panel and Networking. It was an opportunity to hear from alumni about the ways in which their identity played a role in successfully navigating Columbia and the job search and how experiences inside and outside the classroom gave them skills that employers seek.
Congratulations on declaring your major! Now that you’ve begun to narrow down your academic focus, you may be starting to think about ways to explore bringing your academic interests to the professional world. 4 ways to uncover & discover opportunities to put your academic interests to work...
Over sixty first-year CC, SEAS, and GS students gathered in John Jay Lounge last Friday for the My First Summer Student Panel, the first of four events in the Summer Planning for First-Years workshop series this spring. In discussion with moderator Patrick Flanagan (CC ‘18), five upperclass...
