Parents & Families

A student in a graduation gown standing with his parents holding a bouquet of flowers.

Even before your student arrives on campus, Career Advancement is here to support their success. We work closely with students throughout their time at UChicago to help them secure their top-choice jobs, graduate programs, and other post-grad opportunities.

Explore this page to learn more about how UChicago prepares your student for a fulfilling career!

Your Student's Roadmap to Success

To help your student achieve their goals, UChicago uses a four-part roadmap:

1. Get A Head Start

Starting career planning early leads to the best outcomes. Starting early gives students four full years to explore their interests, get experience, and build employer relationships. 

At UChicago, career support begins before students arrive on campus:

  • First-Year Career Adviser: During the summer between high school college, your student is matched with an assigned career adviser who will provide personalized support and help them build a plan for their next four years. 
  • Early Engagement Programs: Career Advancement's early engagement programs help students get on the fast track to success! These programs span six different industries and offer intensive programming that includes professional development workshops, support from industry experts, and funded internship opportunities. Students apply for these programs during the summer of matriculation, and programming begins during the first year. Programs include:
  • Career Exploration Week: Career Exploration Week programs are an opportunity for incoming students to do a deep dive into their career field of interest before arriving on campus. These programs connect students with UChicago alumni, employer partners, and Career Advancement staff in a particular city, and help build community among incoming students through fun group activities – all while safely exploring a new, exciting city! Programs will run September 5 - 8, 2023, with employer visits taking place September 6 - 8.
    • Business & Finance - New York, NY
    • Legal Professions - New York, NY
    • Business & Finance (Trott Emerging Business Leaders) - New York, NY
    • Behavioral Economics & Human Data Explorer - New York, NY
    • Journalism, Media, & Publishing - Washington, D.C.
    • Policy & Social Impact - Washington, D.C. 
    • Healthcare - Philadelphia, PA
    • Computer Science & Data Science - San Francisco, CA
    • Computer Science & Data Science (Odyssey) - San Francisco, CA
    • Business (Transfer Students) - San Francisco, CA
    • Cinematic Arts, Media, & Entertainment - Los Angeles, CA
    • Engineering - Los Angeles, CA
    • Climate & Energy - Denver, Co
    • Quantum - Chicago, IL
    • Biological Sciences - Seattle, WA
  • Taking the Next Step: In Autumn Quarter of the first year, your student will hit the ground running at Taking the Next Step, an event that will introduce them to the many exciting summer opportunities UChicago offers. 

2. Explore and Get Experience

Prior experience is the #1 factor in employer hiring decisions. Your student can get hands-on professional experience by taking advantage of the following programs.

All of these programs help your student explore their interests, build their resume, and get their foot in the door. They put students in a very competitive position for future job opportunities. Students can take advantage of these programs even if they have no prior experience!