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Career Services at Bren

As your personal career coaches, we help make your environmental impact a reality—empowering you with the skills, resources, and connections to land your ideal job and excel throughout your career.

Uncover graduate career insights for our Masters programs with the Bren Student Data Explorer or the UCSB Graduate Statistics dashboard for PhD employment outcomes upon graduation.

90%

LANDED THAT DREAM JOB

90% of the MEDS Class of 2022 said they were satisfied or very satisfied with the result of their job hunt

$75,000

AVERAGE STARTING SALARY

Average starting salary of the MEDS Class of 2022 within 6 months of graduation

81%

STAY CONNECTED

Over three-quarters of Bren alumni are on BrenConnect, our exclusive networking platform

 

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.

Meet Your Career Team

As the Career Development and Alumni Relations Team, we have a combined 50+ years of collective industry, recruiting, and advising experience. Throughout your student and alumni years, we passionately support you in developing lifelong career skills and maximizing your impact on the world as we solve environmental problems together.

  • Dave Parker

    David

    Dave started the Career Development Program in 1998, using his recruiting, consulting, and corporate experience to establish the vision that’s guided students to meaningful careers ever since. Having worked with every class, Dave brings a wealth of contacts and wisdom to his advising.

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    David Parker

    Director of Career Development and Alumni Relations

  • Monica Illes

    Monica

    With her writing and teaching skillsets, Monica leads workshops and provides detailed 1-on-1 resume/CV/cover letter advising while also crafting Career & Alumni Team communications and managing career guidance content for students and alumni on BrenConnect.

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    Monica Illes

    Career Development and Alumni Relations Program Manager

  • Person's face

    Miya

    Miya helps manage the Master of Environmental Data Science (MEDS) career development program, combining her marketing and branding experience with her education in environmental and data science to advise students on how to compellingly market their skills to employers.

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    Miya Scheble

    MEDS Career Development Program Manager

  • Daisy Martinez

    Daisy

    Daisy coordinates career and alumni services and events, provides career advising and document review, and oversees job and internship postings. She also manages the Summer Internship Fellowship (SIF) program and administrative Salesforce support for users and placement statistics.

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    Daisy Martinez

    Career Development and Alumni Relations Coordinator 

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.

Group of five students making peace signs and smiling

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.
 

 

Matt Panopio stands with green hillside in background

Career training is one of the many reasons why the Bren School ranks among the nation’s top. I benefited most from the career team’s personalized feedback on my cover letters, which improved them into highly focused, results-driven documents that landed me multiple interviews during my internship and job search. I would not be in my current job without the Bren career team!

– Matt Panopio, Program Manager, Energy & Sustainable Operations at Amazon (MESM 2019)

Woman leaning against tree holding acoustic guitar

Bren's career team sets you up for success. From in-person consultations to helping you build your network, their coaching is a main reason why Bren students excel. Looking back, my first internship (WWF, Vienna), first job (Environmental Investigation Agency in DC), and entire career trajectory are due to the tools I learned, connections I built, and career advising I got at Bren.

– Anne Middleton, Executive Director at ECOLIFE Conservation (MESM 2008)


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.

Six people link arm in arm smiling


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 Grads Change the World

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.

Non-Profit

The Nature Conservancy
Conservation International 
World Wildlife Fund 
Natural Resources Defense Council 
Environmental Defense Fund 

Corporate

Levi Strauss & Co.
Tesla 
Google
Patagonia
The Walt Disney Company  

Public Agency

Environmental Protection Agency 
NOAA
US Forest Service 
US Fish and Wildlife Service
California Department of Fish and Wildlife 

Research/Think Tank

Center for Ocean Solutions 
National Center for Ecological Analysis and Synthesis
Resources for the Future 
Natural Reserve System
Public Policy Institute of California 

Consulting

AECOM 
ICF
Rincon Consultants 
Woodard & Curran
WSP

Entrepreneurship

Bren-founded companies:
The Hurd Co.
EVmatch
Salty Girl Seafood 
Martin & McCoy
Figueroa Mountain Brewing Co.

As an environmental professional, I can attest that Bren School students are more prepared for the workforce than students from any other school I’ve seen, their cover letters are on point and personalized, their resumes relevant to the position sought, and their interviews strong and compelling.

— Mitchel Morrison, Environmental Scientist/Planner, Envicom Corporation & Ventura County Programs Representative, AEP Channel Counties Chapter

Two students designing an educational game on paper

How will you solve environmental problems?

Request more information, get to know the Bren School, and start planning your application today.

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