20 years of impact

From co-op office to career connection: Ulmer Career Center celebrates 20 years

Twenty years ago, the University of Louisville College of Business made a significant investment in an idea: preparing students for careers should be an integral part of the business school experience.

The Ulmer Career Management Center opened in February 2006, but its roots stretch further back. Before 2004, career development within the college operated primarily as a small co-op office. Over the next two years, the college expanded employer recruiting, added business roundtables and information sessions and began building relationships designed to bring more career opportunities directly to students.

Alumni support helped turn that growing effort into something much larger.

For Dan Ulmer ’55, the need was personal. After returning from military service, Ulmer experienced firsthand what it was like to enter the workforce without the kind of career guidance and support he believed students should have. Years later, that experience helped motivate his support for creating a dedicated career center at his alma mater, one that could help students prepare for the transition from college to a career and continue supporting them throughout their professional lives.

The nearly $700,000 center was funded largely through alumni contributions, including $300,000 from Ulmer and his wife, Helen ’55, and $100,000 from James A. Patterson ’55. Their investment helped create a dedicated career center designed to connect business students with employers and prepare them for the transition from college to career.

As plans for the center took shape, attention turned to where it would be located. When then-Dean Charlie Moyer arrived at UofL in 2005, the space that would become the Ulmer Career Center was occupied by an aging university computer lab. The lightly used space had outdated equipment and furnishings. Moyer worked with then-UofL President James Ramsey to have the space turned over to the college for the new career center. At the same time, the college refurbished and technologically upgraded its remaining computer labs on the same level.

What emerged was a dramatic change from both the old computer lab and the college’s two-person Co-op/Career Development Office. The new 3,800-square-foot facility tripled the career operation’s space and staff and included 10 private interview rooms, conference rooms, a student learning suite, career resource library and recruiter lounge. Students gained expanded access to career counseling, resume assistance, internships and co-ops, employer recruiting and technology connecting them with job opportunities.

The impact came quickly. In 2006, career counselors conducted 612 one-on-one appointments, compared with 156 the year before. In 2007, career development became part of the college’s curriculum through BUS 201, helping students connect their interests, skills and values with majors and career opportunities.

That foundation has continued to evolve. Career fairs, mentoring, employer panels, virtual services and Cardinal Careers have expanded the center’s reach. Today, students have access to career coaching, mock interviews, mentoring, internships, career fairs and dozens of career-readiness programs. In year 20, 183 employers recruited at four business-focused career fairs, while 218 employer volunteers supported career-readiness events.

One priority, however, has remained constant from the center’s earliest days: career support should not end at graduation. The commitment to providing career services for life, at no cost to College of Business alumni, was an important part of the vision championed by the center’s original donors. That lifetime career promise means alumni can return to the Ulmer Career Center as their careers evolve, whether they are pursuing a new opportunity, navigating a career change or preparing for their next chapter.

The numbers tell part of the story. The generations of students and alumni who found internships, gained confidence, built professional networks, launched careers and returned for guidance along the way tell the rest.

Over two decades, the career center has served:

• 11,369+ students and alumni in career coaching appointments.
• 10,188 students in 247 BUS 201 sections.
• 2,428 employers at 57 career fairs.
• 4,486 undergraduate students seeking internships.

Twenty years after its opening, the Ulmer Career Center continues the vision behind its creation: connecting business education with the world of work and providing career support that extends well beyond graduation, preparing Cardinals not simply for their first job, but for a lifetime of what comes next.