From the first year to graduation day and beyond, the Pulsifer Undergraduate Career Development Center helps students develop the skills and contacts required to pave the way for professional success. The center has programs and services to tap at every stage of career planning. These opportunities include:
Career Design Introduction (CDI) 101: This six-week course provides first-year students in the spring of their first year with a comprehensive career toolkit and the opportunity to develop an effective college resume, cover letter, elevator pitch, and LinkedIn profile; conduct informational meetings; and learn how to find internships and prepare for interviews, while learning about their own strengths. The early introduction of career design and management principles prepares students to apply for highly selective internships and engage with employers. This course is a free, non-academic pass/fail course that is only offered in the spring of students' first year at Bentley.
Career Design Introduction (CDI) 201: This four-week course provides sophomores in the fall of their second year with continuing career education, focusing on self-assessment, career design, major decisions, and job search readiness. The curriculum is centered on advanced StrengthsFinder and Strong Interest Inventory based assessment, design your life theory, and major decision and customized career action planning. This course is a free, non-academic course with no assignments or final exams and is available to sophomores and juniors.
Career Design Intensive (CDI) 301: These specialized asynchronous courses educate sophomores, juniors, and seniors about advanced job searching as it relates to their particular major, related jobs and industries, recruiting timelines, interview preparation, and offer management, and help students develop their advanced career development toolkits, career management skills, and workplace readiness competencies as upperclassmen. This course is a free, non-academic course with no assignments or final exams and is available to sophomores, juniors, and seniors.
Career Coaches & Colleagues: Experienced career coaches work closely with students within dedicated majors and career communities. Dedicated career coaches possess an in-depth knowledge of career resources, assessment tools, and alumni in relevant fields. They also offer insight into employers, functional roles, recruiting timelines and requirements, and employer expectations to assist and prepare students as they navigate the job search process. Coaches are available for individual coaching appointments and during open drop-in hours throughout the year to assist students with all of their job search needs. A team of highly trained peer Career Colleagues are available to meet with first- and second-year students Monday through Friday from 1-3 p.m. without an appointment during the academic year.
Career Assessment: Online tools such as StrengthsFinder and Strong Interest Inventory help students learn more about their strengths, skills, personality, and career/major interests. A trained career coach interprets the results and discusses academic and career options, including nontraditional choices.
Recruiting Programs: More than 65,000 internships and full-time job opportunities from a range of industries and fields are available to students through campus recruiting each year. Students enjoy 24/7 access to our online recruiting platform Handshake to learn about and apply to thousands of local, national, and international positions, and schedule interviews with companies and organizations recruiting on campus. This past year, companies that recruited at Bentley included Amazon, Blue Cross Blue Shield, Bose, Boston Scientific, Dell Technologies, Deloitte Consulting, DraftKings, Epsilon, Fidelity Investments, JPMorgan Chase & Co., John Hancock, Liberty Mutual, L'Oreal, Mediahub Worldwide, Oracle, Protiviti, Raytheon Technologies, State Street, The TJX Companies, Travelers, UBS, Wayfair, Wellington Management, and the Big 4 accounting firms, among many others.
Career & Affinity/Identity Communities: The Pulsifer Undergraduate Career Development Center embraces Career & Affinity/Identity Communities as a model to expand student awareness of the many functional roles, employer organizations, and industries that can align with their unique strengths and interests. This holistic approach introduces students to a collaborative ecosystem of a variety of industry professionals, within a learning community, to explore the relevancy and application of classroom knowledge and skills with the needs of the business community. As the convener of over 20 Career & Affinity/Identity Communities, Undergraduate Career Development brings students together with faculty, alumni, parents, and friends into learning communities that provide mentorship and connection around similar career interests.
Internships: Internships enable students to integrate conceptual knowledge with practical experience as they participate in career-related employment associated with their academic interests. Internships help students apply theory to workplace challenges, test career options, strengthen skills, learn more about their values and interests, and make the transition to the world of work. Whether positions are for-credit, not-for-credit, paid, or unpaid, the Pulsifer Undergraduate Career Development Center encourages all students to take advantage of this important experiential vehicle.