The Career Development Office’s Annual Impact Report: SY ’22-’23
What We Do
Our office supports students and alumni on their career journey by providing career education and advising, experiential learning opportunities, campus recruitment opportunities, graduate and preprofessional programs, and fellowships and global awards advising.
To facilitate a wide array of programming, networking, resources, and recruitment events, the CDO created five career teams to be intentional about broadening our scope of work to support students who are interested in exploring opportunities outside of the fields that regularly engage in campus recruitment.
Ways We Engage
The CDO is proud to partner with various offices on campus to better reach the broader Pomona community, providing collaborative programming for international students, alumni, individual class years, and more. Here is a list of programming that the CDO and other departments collaborated on during the 2022-23 academic year:
Applying for Global Awards and Fellowships
In collaboration with Chicano Latino Student Affairs
CDO x ISSS Off-Campus Opportunities and Your F-1 Status
In collaboration with International Student and Scholar Services
Chirp & Chat: A Student and Alumni Networking Mixer
In collaboration with Alumni & Family Engagement
Fall 2022 Accounting and Finance and Spring 2023 Consulting Meet-Ups
In collaboration with Claremont McKenna College Soll Center for Student Opportunity
Intensive Summer Experience Symposium
In collaboration with Academic Affairs, Advancement, College Events & Community Relations and Information Technology Services
Pre-Departure Orientation for 2023 Summer Experiences
In collaboration with Academic Affairs and Study Abroad
Sagehen to Sagehen Class Year Programming
In collaboration with Class Deans
Programming Highlights
Intensive Summer Experience Symposium 2022
Pomona College Students showcased the results of their summer research and internships in a weeklong experience both through asynchronous content and in-person panel presentations. Approximately 1,829 users visited the ISES platform, totaling 85.29 hours of time viewers spent engaging with 50 student panelist participants and 285 projects were submitted.
The CDO and the Academic Dean’s Office are grateful to the generous donors, alumni, parents, and friends of the College for their continued support in making these programs possible.
Sagehen Snack Interviews
Sagehen Snacks is a media series created and moderated by Peer Advisors to explore the careers and post-Pomona endeavors of Pomona alumni and industry leaders. The Peer Advisors were able to facilitate 10 candid conversations to learn more about how these alumni landed their first jobs following their college career.
Smart Start
The Smart Start Career Fellows Program, which launched in 2017, was created for sophomores who identify as first-generation college and/or low-income (FLI) students. The primary goal of this award-winning program is to provide career development opportunities and experiences for students who have an interest in exploring various post-Pomona pathways. The 2022-23 program culminated in a trek to San Francisco where the fellows connected with alumni and industry leaders.
- 12 Smart Start Fellows, 12 Alumni Mentors, and 9 Employer Hosts
- Career Leadership Collective’s Winner of the 2023 Career Innovation Award
- 67% of Program Donations Have Come From Alums
Chirp & Chat: Student and Alumni Networking Mixer
Every year during Alumni Weekend, our office hosts Chirp & Chat, a student and alumni networking mixer that encourages conversations between Pomona students and alumni. In partnership with the Pomona College Alumni Board and Alumni Engagement, the CDO connects Sagehens across a broad range of industries, experiences, and backgrounds. This year, we had 82 alumni and 84 student totaling 166 attendees!
Experiential Learning
Graduate & Professional School
The CDO continues to offer one-on-one advising to current students and alumni with aspirations to apply for graduate school. Our individualized alumni career assistance is targeted to more recent graduates, but also supports all Pomona alumni, as they have lifetime access to resources and advisement.
2022 Matriculated List
- Chapman University
- City University of NY
- Columbia University
- Emory University
- Georgetown University
- Harvard University
- New York University
- Seton Hall University
- Stanford University
- University of Cambridge
- University of Chicago
- University of North Carolina
- University of Pennsylvania
- University of San Diego
- University of Southern California
- University of Texas
- University of Washington
- University of California, Berkeley
- University of California, Davis
- University of California, Irvine
- University of California, Los Angeles
- Yale University
Prelaw Support for Students and Alumni
“When I got accepted into Berkeley Law, and found out that I was a recipient of the Graduated Diversity Program Award, a full tuition scholarship awarded to one first-year law student, the first person I called was Susanne Filback, the pre-law advisor at the CDO.”
–Malak Afaneh ’21
The CDO continues to offer a wide range of prelaw related activities to inform candidates about application processes and timelines, all aspects of the admission application including personal statement review, résumé critique, LSAT preparation, the Credential Assembly Service process, letters of recommendation, and general strategies for obtaining admission to law school.
Fellowships & Global Awards
Every year, Pomona students apply for and receive competitive grants to fund graduate school, research, service opportunities, and travel abroad. The CDO offers guidance on every part of the process, from finding competitive scholarships and fellowships to compiling and submitting the application.