Career Development Center

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Career Development Center

The Career Development Center (CDC) at WPI serves all degree seeking undergraduate and graduate students in the development of life-long skills related to careers including the internship/co-op and job search process. In addition, alumni have access to free lifetime CDC services.

The Career Development Center (CDC) services include:

  1. INDIVIDUAL APPOINTMENTS – Students can easily schedule one-on-one appointments with a CDC Staff Member online through their Handshake. Students can choose to discuss topics ranging from major selection, exploring career options, searching for internships/co-ops/jobs, interviewing, applying to graduate school, and evaluating and negotiating job offers.
  2. DROP-IN HOURS – Drop in hours with CDC Peer Advisor allow students to get career help on a first-come, first-served basis during a 10-15 minute session.
  3. HANDSHAKE – All enrolled students have a Handshake account. Handshake is WPI’s career portal and contains up-to-date Handshake internship, co-op, part-time, and full-time job opportunities posted by employers interested in recruiting from WPI. The system also is the hub for CDC events, career fairs, and career resources
  4. CAREER EDUCATION RESOURCES –Among the many resources, the CDC offers to students are Focus2, CareerShift GoingGlobal, Shortlist.me, FirstHand by Vault, Beyond Graduate School, and Beyond the Professoriate.
  5. CAREER OUTLOOK PAGES – The CDC has put together a webpage with short descriptions of what can be expected from different WPI majors and careers, including average salaries, companies that have hired WPI graduates in a particular field, sample job titles, professional associations and clubs, popular industries, and more.
  6. CAREER FAIRS – Each year the CDC organizes career fairs for students to network with employers and obtain information on full-time, summer internship and co-op opportunities. The CDC hosts 2 in person events and many more events virtually.
  7. COLLABORATION WITH STUDENT GROUPS AND ACADEMIC DEPARTMENTS – Throughout the year, the CDC delivers workshops for students on a wide variety topics including resumes/cover letters, internship/co-op/job search strategies, networking, interview skills, job offers and negotiation, and applying to graduate school, among others.
  8. NETWORKING NIGHTS and CAREER EXPOS – The CDC hosts networking nights and career expos throughout the year to give students an opportunity to network with alumni, fellow students, and industry professionals.
  9. EMPLOYER “TALENT TABLING” – Companies host events on-campus to present on their organization, culture, and technology while networking and sharing opportunities with students. Check your WPI Handshake account for upcoming events.
  10. EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITIES – Many employers want to exclusively hire WPI talent and will post these positions in Handshake.  An employer may also host “Talent Table” session in the Career Corner to showcase their company and openings to students
  11. ON-CAMPUS INTERVIEWS – Each year interviews are held on campus with a variety of private, non-profit, and government organizations for full-time, summer internship, and co-op opportunities.
  12. GRADUATE SCHOOL – The Career Development Center (CDC) can help students search for graduate programs at WPI (BS/MS, MS, MEng, PhD) or elsewhere and assist with preparing for and applying to graduate school.
  13. ALUMNI ASSISTANCE – WPI alumni have free lifetime access to the CDC’s in-person or virtual services

Location

Unity Hall 5th Floor | 508-831-5260  | cdc@wpi.edu | www.wpi.edu/+CDC