University of Chicago Career Advancement

What University of Chicago Career Advancement does

University of Chicago Career Advancement is a career services department within The University of Chicago, a private non-profit research university. The department serves the institution's undergraduate College students plus alumni up to five years post-graduation, delivering career advising, internship placement, job search support, graduate school preparation, and professional development programming. Services are offered at no direct cost to students, and the office is staffed by approximately 37 employees led by Executive Director Meredith Daw, with operations headquartered at Ida Noyes Hall on the UChicago campus.

The department operates a multi-channel career services platform built around UChicago Handshake, which functions as the primary technology infrastructure for job postings, internship applications, appointment scheduling, and employer recruiting. Supplementary integrations include Big Interview for recorded interview practice and Muse for student portfolio building. The product portfolio comprises individual career advising appointments, 17 industry-specific pre-professional programs (Careers in...) spanning Artificial Intelligence, Finance, Consulting, Healthcare, Policy, Law, and other fields, the Jeff Metcalf Internship Program and Metcalf Sprints for funded experiential learning, week-long Career Treks to employer destinations, day-long recruiting forums and job shadowing, self-service toolkits for resumes, cover letters, interviews, and salary negotiation, plus cohort-based selective programs including the Fried Public Policy and Service Program, Public Policy Leaders Program, Pozen Global Health Scholars, Kiphart Collegiate Fellows, and UChicago Democracy Careers. International support is delivered through CPT/OPT workshops and global career experiences in partnership with the Office of International Affairs and the Center for Global Health.

Career Advancement is funded through the University of Chicago's institutional budget and does not generate commercial revenue; employer engagement on Handshake and student services are provided at no charge. Reported outcomes include 98% of the Class of 2026 securing post-college offers by graduation, 90% law school acceptance, and 91% medical school acceptance. Strategic partnerships with the Kiphart Center for Global Health (2021), Pozen Family Center for Human Rights, Harris School of Public Policy, Institute of Politics, and various donor-funded programs (Pozen, Kiphart, Seidel, Stamps) extend the department's reach into specialized verticals. The office operates on seasonal recruiting cycles aligned with the academic calendar, with formal recruiting intensives in August, immersion weeks in September, and fall career fairs as anchor events.

Name

University of Chicago Career Advancement

Legal name

University of Chicago Career Advancement

Website

https://careeradvancement.uchicago.edu

Company type

Private

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

University of Chicago Career Advancement is the career services department for UChicago College undergraduates, providing advising, internships, recruiting, and graduate school preparation at no cost to students, powered by the Handshake platform and staffed by 37 employees.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

University Career Services

NAICS

Colleges, Universities, and Professional Schools (611310), Professional and Management Development Training (61143)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro primary industry

Career Services & Career Readiness (EDALABAB)

akta.pro secondary industries

Alumni Career Networking & Mentorship Programs (EDALAOAL), Internships, Externships & Work-Based Learning Placement (EDAMAKAB), Career Readiness & Employability Skills (Resume, Interview, Networking) (EDAMAKAG), Graduate & Professional School Preparation (EDALABAI)

Keywords

• Career services
• Internship placement
• Career advising
• Graduate admissions advising
• Professional development

Headquarters

HQ city

Chicago

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. University Funding: Career Advancement is a department of the University of Chicago, funded through institutional budgets. Services are provided at no direct cost to students.

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

University of Chicago Career Advancement is the College's career services department, providing individual career advising, industry-specific pre-professional programs across 17 fields, internship funding through the Jeff Metcalf Internship Program and related grants, recruiting events and career treks, and self-service toolkits covering resumes, interviews, networking, and salary negotiation. It supports students from first-year career exploration through post-graduation employment and graduate/professional school applications, leveraging the Handshake platform and partnerships across UChicago academic centers.

Product overview

University of Chicago Career Advancement is a comprehensive career services department offering a multi-faceted portfolio of programs and resources for undergraduate students. The core offerings include individual Career Advising Appointments, 17 specialized Careers In... pre-professional programs covering fields from AI to Technology, and experiential learning through the Jeff Metcalf Internship Program and related funding. These are supplemented by self-service toolkits for resumes, interviews, and salary negotiations; recruiting platforms via UChicago Handshake; networking resources including Alumni Directory and career treks; and cohort-based selective programs like the Fried Public Policy and Service Program, Public Policy Leaders Program, Pozen Global Health Scholars, and Kiphart Collegiate Fellows. International career support is provided through specialized CPT workshops and global opportunity resources. Together, these services form an integrated career development ecosystem guiding students from first-year exploration through post-graduation employment.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Careers in Policy, Government, & Nonprofits: Pre-professional program offering guidance for careers in policy, government, and nonprofit sectors
• Global Health Careers
• Pozen Global Health Scholars Program
• Kiphart Collegiate Fellows Program
• Public Policy Leaders Program (PPLP)
• Fried Public Policy and Service Program
• UChicago Democracy Careers
• Jeff Metcalf Internship Program
• UChicago Handshake

Products and services

• Career Advising Appointments

Quantifiable outcome

• 98% of Class of 2026 secured post-college offers by graduation
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers13 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration3 records

Feature1 record

Partnerships

14 partnerships are on record, tiered core, key and secondary.

• Kiphart Center for Global Health and Social DevelopmentcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2021Established in 2021, the Kiphart Center partners with Career Advancement to offer the Kiphart Collegiate Fellows Program providing stipends for experiential learning internships in global health and social development abroad with focus on Global South.
• HandshakecoreTechnology or IntegrationHandshake is the primary technology platform used by Career Advancement for job postings, internship listings, appointment scheduling, employer recruiting management, and career fair coordination. All UChicago College students and alumni access career services through this platform.
• Pozen Family Center for Human RightscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership with the Pozen Family Center for Human Rights to offer the Pozen Human Rights Internship Program providing internship opportunities in global human rights for undergraduate students.
• Richard and Ann PozenkeyOthersThe Global Health Scholars Program is supported by a generous gift from Richard, AB'69, and Ann Pozen.
• Institute of PoliticssecondaryStrategic or Co-development PartnerUChicago Institute of Politics partners with Career Advancement for Democracy Careers initiative and provides programming and internship opportunities for students interested in policy and government careers.
• Harris School of Public PolicysecondaryStrategic or Co-development PartnerHarris School of Public Policy provides training in hard and soft skills relevant for policy careers for students in the Public Policy Leaders Program.
• UChicago Office of Federal RelationssecondaryStrategic or Co-development PartnerOffice partners with Career Advancement to facilitate on-campus internships and research opportunities related to government and policy careers.
• Chicago Center on DemocracysecondaryStrategic or Co-development PartnerCenter partners with Career Advancement for Democracy Careers initiative to provide career resources for students interested in democracy-focused careers.
• Center for Effective GovernmentsecondaryStrategic or Co-development PartnerCenter partners with Career Advancement to facilitate on-campus internships and research opportunities for students interested in government careers.
• Office of International Affairs (OIA)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerOIA partners with Career Advancement for CPT (Curricular Practical Training) workshops and work authorization support for international students seeking internships and employment.
• Crown School of Social Service AdministrationsecondaryStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartners with Career Advancement to provide training in hard and soft skills relevant for policy careers through the Public Policy Leaders Program.
• Social Sciences DivisionsecondaryStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartners with Career Advancement to provide training and skill development for students in the Public Policy Leaders Program.
• Center for Global HealthcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCGH partners with Career Advancement to offer the Summer Research Fellowship allowing undergraduates to participate in 10-12 week research fellowships in Chicago and abroad partnering sites.
• Democracy CurriculumcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership between Career Advancement and Democracy Curriculum to offer UChicago Democracy Careers providing tailored advising and experiential opportunities for students interested in democracy-focused careers.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Northwestern Career Advancement: Northwestern's centralized career office serving undergraduates with advising, fairs, and Handshake-powered recruiting. Notably shares a near-identical name with UChicago Career Advancement and operates the same Handshake model.
• Duke Career Center: Duke University's career services hub for undergraduates offering advising, recruiting fairs, and industry-specific programming. Comparable operating model and student population.
• MIT Career Advising & Professional Development: MIT's central career office offering advising, recruiting events, and Handshake-based job postings to undergraduates and alumni. Highly comparable operating model and target population.
• Harvard Office of Career Services: Career services office serving Harvard College undergraduates with advising, recruiting, and alumni networking. Directly comparable in function, scale, and elite-institution positioning to UChicago Career Advancement.
• Brown CareerLAB: Brown University's career services office providing advising, recruiting, and experiential-learning support to undergraduates. Comparable in mission and target population at a peer institution.
• Stanford Career Education: Stanford's career services unit providing advising, recruiting, and industry-specific programming to undergraduates. Comparable in depth of pre-professional programming and elite-employer recruiting focus.
• Yale Office of Career Strategy: Yale College's career services office providing advising, recruiting events, and graduate-school preparation to undergraduates. Comparable in function and elite-institution positioning.
• Princeton Career Services: Princeton University's central career office serving undergraduates with advising, recruiting, and pre-professional programs. Comparable in scale and selective-institution positioning.
• Columbia Center for Career Education: Columbia University's career services office offering advising, recruiting events, and alumni networking to undergraduates. Comparable in scope, scale, and elite-recruiting positioning.
• Penn Career Services: University of Pennsylvania's central career office providing advising, employer recruiting, and pre-professional programming. Comparable in structure, target audience, and use of Handshake.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/UChicagoCareer
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/career-advancement-the-university-of-chicago

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles6 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about University of Chicago Career Advancement