Student Testimonials

I think Career Services is probably a resource that is underutilized by students. It made such a big difference to me. [Associate Director Karen Carli] helped me in ways I didn’t even know I needed. What really was one of my lightbulb moments was when I said, ‘I don’t really know what I want to do.’ She said, ‘Okay, Brooke, on your best days, what tasks do you do and on your worst days, what tasks do you do?’ That kind of led me to start applying to more analyst roles.

The Great Valley staff was amazing and helped me navigate through the degree. Personally, Penn State Global Engagement and Leadership Experience was a great experience where I made some amazing friends for a lifetime. Professionally, being in the LaunchBox Student Startup Project was my best experience. I edited videos, created content, and hosted some cool podcasts which will be released later. It was the most joyous and amazing experience.

I had an enriching experience at Penn State Great Valley. It was a mix of classroom knowledge along with the real-world implementation at the Nittany AI Challenge. This university-wide competition gave me the opportunity to connect with bright and driven people who were very helpful and guided us in every possible way towards our victory. The administration and staff from the Great Valley campus were equally helpful and encouraging in this journey.

I worked with Career Services to find my summer internship. They do a lot of work. They do help you a lot and provide you with résumé advice, interview skills, and even in the first steps of communications, how to communicate to your future employer, and more.

To land a career is a journey in itself.  I never felt alone in the process from day one, since I received immense help and guidance from Career Services from Lou Lamorte and Karen Carli. In the beginning semesters, Lou and I worked more on highlighting my strengths in my resume and LinkedIn profile, and in the final semesters, I got a chance to work with Karen Carli on career transitions. Both Lou and Karen dedicated a lot of review sessions for me. Karen was helping me out through email even after my graduation and met on Zoom during the pandemic. Karen gave a lot of hope, guidance, and resources to help me keep on. I am also thankful for Nittany Lion Careers and the alumni network. I was contacted through LinkedIn for my current role at EY!

I would definitely give all the credit [for finding a job] to Karen [Carli], the career counselor at Great Valley. I reached out to her, and we were looking at the Nittany Lion Careers website. She actually taught me how to use that website and how to search for jobs there. … She is the best. She helps you. … She was the emotional support. She was there to let me know, ‘Just hang in there. You’ll be fine.’

As an MBA graduate from Great Valley and a Penn State undergraduate alum, I cannot stress enough how important the Career Services office is and how it has helped me with my career. With the help of Karen Carli, I have had found many opportunities and even landed internships and jobs with Karen's help. It wouldn't be exaggerating for me to say that Karen has helped me from an undergraduate student who barely knew what is expected in the job market, or even in my resume, to a successful MBA candidate with full knowledge of career searches. Karen and Career Services have always been here for me from my very first day at Penn State until after I graduated. I would dedicate my career search effort to the team, especially for Karen Carli.