Katy DeMedal, Jennifer Hough and Bethany Lockie wait to assist you in the Professional Development Center.
P D C
PREPARING STUDENTS TO BECOME
“A
successful alumni
fter graduation.” These are two words that Katy DeMedal and Jennifer Hough hear almost daily in their office, and for good reason: They aim to make sure Westminster students are prepared, connected and possibly already employed once they turn their tassels at commencement.
Their office is the Professional Development Center (PDC), but if you’re a Westminster alumnus who graduated in 2018 or before, you’ll know it as the Career Center. A recent focus group study showed that students didn’t identify with the Career Center name and, because of this, they were less prone to take advantage of its offerings. So, the office was rebranded and renamed to better describe the focus of the office. The office did more than change its name this academic year; director DeMedal, assistant director Hough and new staff member Bethany Lockie picked up shop and relocated to a more visible space on the second floor of McKelvey Campus Center—the suite which formerly housed the Office of Student Affairs. Whether
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it’s the new name or the new space, DeMedal says they have seen an increase in traffic flow to their office. The new PDC also comes with a new initiative this year: the Career Ambassadors Program (CAP). “We wanted to find ways for students to feel more comfortable coming into our office,” said DeMedal, adding that one way to provide a more welcoming atmosphere was to have a student be the first face visitors see when they walk in. Student volunteer ambassadors or “CAP students”— they have nine this year—help educate their peers about the services the PDC offers. They can offer advice on networking and how to stay on target in their postcollege job searches. So, with a new name, a new space—and even some fresh new faces—it’s a good time to reacquaint Titan alumni with some of PDC’s services and how the office can work for alumni—and how alumni can work to help Westminster students.
