Preparing Students for Life After College

Life after college can be intimidating. Students may be jolted by the sudden change from a highly structured academic schedule to the often unpredictable nature of professional environments. Now in its second year, Saint Joseph’s Ready to Launch program was specifically created to assist with that transition. 

Ready to Launch helps students gain internship experience and build the skills necessary to prepare for and navigate life after college. Designed with students of color, LGBTQIA+, first-generation and Pell-eligible students in mind, events are held throughout the school year covering different topics from budgeting and money management to networking and authenticity. Each event allows students to ask questions of peers, alumni, and campus and community partners. 

“Personal finance and professionalism aren’t always taught in school or even at home.” - Janée N. Burkhalter, PhD, associate provost of diversity, equity and inclusion and professor of marketing

“Personal finance and professionalism aren’t always taught in school or even at home,” says Janée N. Burkhalter, PhD, associate provost of diversity, equity and inclusion and professor of marketing, who had access to similar programming in college. “For example, some students come out of college with so much debt, they don’t know how to manage it. Another example is students questioning whether tattoos are acceptable in the workplace.” 

Providing students with valuable experiences has been essential to Ready to Launch’s success. For the 2023-24 academic year, a total of 45 students are in the program — a 12% increase over the previous year. 

“I spoke with an alumna whose company has a ‘Transition into the Workplace’ program,” says Burkhalter. “She was excited and said, ‘Some of the stuff you are doing with your students, we are doing with our new hires because they are not getting it anywhere else.’”

Current students are sharing positive feedback too. Burkhalter received numerous student surveys touting how Ready to Launch has built a tight-knit community. 

“There was one group from an event last January where students, alumni and corporate partners all checked in on each other in a group chat,” says Burkhalter. “They asked how the semester was going or shared a podcast others would enjoy. I am thinking about how we can replicate that.” 

As for the future, Burkhalter has growth in mind. 

“We are always looking for other opportunities to help students,” says Burkhalter. “We know what is helpful for students will change as each class graduates, so we need to keep being creative.”