Career Services at Bren

As your career team, we're fully dedicated to your professional success at Bren and beyond.

At Bren, prioritizing your career development isn’t just an available perk—it’s a way of life steeped into our ethos as a professional program and community of change-makers serious about solving environmental problems, and we have the data to prove it.
 
From day one of orientation, to graduation and beyond, we prepare you to navigate any professional situation and thrive in a competitive, ever-changing job market. We’re here to guide you every step of the way with personalized advising, workshops, online resources, job/internships opportunities, alumni connections, and more.
 
You’re our hope for a sustainable future, and we’ve got your back.

The Bren Career Edge

We’re committed to helping you build the skills and mindsets to not only land your dream job, but grow throughout your career.

Customized 1-on-1 guidance for your unique career journey
We get to know you, your interests, and your dreams, and we support you every step of the way. With an open-door advising policy (plus 3 built-in resume and mock interview appointments), we pride ourselves on providing a high level of customer service.

Built-in career skills boot camp = lifetime professional smarts    
Through regular career workshops (20+ over two years), guest speakers and recruiting sessions, mingling practicums, and networking events—along with weekly career tip/action item emails, 1-on-1 advising, and online resources—you’ll be prepared to secure a summer internship and network, land jobs, and grow throughout your career.

A foundation in viewing, thinking, and doing things differently 
Behind everything we teach is a goal to help you develop the right mindsets—writing your resume for the jobs you want, not those you’ve done; building a network that transforms you from an outsider to an insider; and confidently negotiating offers knowing employers want you to (to name a few). You’ll not only get results, but you’ll also be nimble, marketable, and strategic during future job hunts, life transitions, and industry changes.

^{Students in the MESM Class of 2020 during the team-building activities that the career team leads at orientation each year.}

Worldwide alumni and employer connections 
We constantly develop and nurture a strong network to connect you to opportunities and people who can help throughout your career. Given our team’s long-term stability and Bren’s highly engaged alumni, this model helps Bren students land summer internships all over the world and rewarding jobs prior to or shortly after graduation (60-70% typically secure positions via the Bren network), not to mention new positions as alumni.

A team with a robust blend of professional insights 
With our combined 50+ years of expertise, we translate our insights from recruiting and corporate training, student advising, and varied environmental sectors into innovative “Bren approaches” such as our 3-tiered job search strategy for success in any economy and our attention-grabbing cover letter format that’s easy to tailor to different positions.

Support after Bren
It doesn’t stop after you leave! The Bren career team directly supports our grads during the months after graduation as you start the next chapter of your career. And, as an alum, you retain 24/7 access to our Bren-specific online career resources and networking tools, including 100+ articles, a robust alumni database, job announcements, and more via BrenConnect.
 

BrenConnect

BrenConnect links you to hundreds of alumni and jobs.

Your go-to resource for career development and networking, BrenConnect is a one-stop platform for current students and alumni to stay connected and access career resources. More than 75% of Bren’s 1,400+ alumni are BrenConnect users, meaning you can find and connect with fellow Bren change-makers working on environmental solutions in all industries, from global NGOs and Fortune 500 companies to government agencies and alumni-owned businesses. 

No wonder BrenConnect was recognized as a finalist for a Salesforce Higher Education Overall Excellence in Innovation Award and as a case study in alumni networking platforms. Ultimately, BrenConnect enhances career advising and networking opportunities for students and alumni, helping strengthen the connections within and impact of the Bren community.

BrenConnect offers:

Environmental job and internship listings shared by alumni, staff, students, and employers (3-10+ commonly posted each weekday, especially during peak search seasons). Wondering how to get your foot in the door? Alumni often include inside info and/or offers to speak with anyone interested. 

Powerful alumni finder and search tool to query Bren grads by location, sector, specific employer, or name. Looking for a job with a certain public agency in a certain city? Find a Bren alum who can open that door.

Bren-specific career resources available 24/7, including how-to guides and examples covering our tried-and-true steps for networking, searching for jobs and internships, applying, interviewing, negotiating salary, and more.

Your personal BrenConnect profile, which you can update throughout your career to make your job and contact information available to fellow classmates and alumni looking to connect, collaborate, or catch up.

Bren Alumni Solve Environmental Problems in Every Sector

Employers never stop raving about Bren graduates—we have a reputation for preparing students who excel as employees. As a Bren student and future alum, you’ll be inspired by the careers of our 1,400+ network of alumni—and you’ll be able to connect with them on BrenConnect to talk internships, job opportunities, and career advice.