Career Advancement
Lifetime Support for Career Advancement
A benefit of being a graduate of Wellesley College is continued access to Career Education resources. Dedicated Alumnae Career Advisors and Industry Advisors are here to help you navigate your career journey, make meaningful connections, overcome obstacles, and celebrate success at every stage.
We offer one-on-one advising, resume and cover letter reviews, interview practice, professional development webinars, and advice on new trends that will impact your job search process. Our experienced staff can work with you to address whatever you are facing, including making a career pivot/change, advancing in your current career field, re-entering the workforce, or finding an “encore career” after retirement.
Connect using Handshake and The Wellesley Hive
Alumnae maintain lifelong access to Career Education technology platforms. Handshake is Wellesley's online platform for finding jobs/internships and making appointments with advisors. The Wellesley Hive is an interactive virtual space for professional networking and mentorship with other Wellesley alums and current students.
The Hive also includes a robust job board! Each job post features suggested connections to help you take your search to the next level. Find a good job match? Reach out to an alum associated with the role or company. Alums can also share opportunities directly with other alums by posting positions directly to The Hive.
For ease of use and security, your Wellesley username and password are required to log in to both platforms.
Opportunities for Alums to Engage with Students via Internships
Interested in creating an internship for a Wellesley student, or sharing an existing opportunity with the Wellesley network? This helpful resource outlines how.
Spring 2026 Alumnae Connections Programs
‘Ask a Career Coach’ Series
Wednesday, January 14, Noon – 1:00 PM ET
Tuesday, 3 February, Noon – 1:00 PM ET
Monday, March 9, Noon – 1:00 PM ET
Thursday, April 2, Noon – 1:00 PM ET (Topic: Fellowships and planning for future graduate and professional studies)
Tuesday, May 5, Noon – 1:00 PM ET
Whether you're looking for a new industry or position, contemplating graduate study, navigating a role change or promotion, returning to the workforce, or planning for an engaged retirement, drop in to ask our Alum Career Advisors your questions!
Alum Webinar: Thriving and Growing in your Early Career
Monday, January 26, Noon – 1:00 PM ET
The transition from college to your first job (and second and third jobs) can be challenging and exciting in many ways. Alum advisors Becky King and Dana Keep will share ideas and tools to help when you are new to a role, what to do if you don’t like your job, and how to keep growing, learning, and advancing in your early career.
Alum Webinar: Careers in Human Resources Panel
Tuesday, February 24, 2026, Noon – 1:00 PM EST
Are you a people person? Interested in hearing from Wellesley alums about a variety of career paths in Human Resources? Join us for this panel discussion to learn more about roles in human resources, talent development, and change management.
Fireside Chat: How to remain hopeful and positive during turbulent times
Tuesday, March 24, 2026, Noon – 1:00 PM ET
Given today’s ever-shifting economic landscape, career resilience is no longer just a soft skill – it’s a necessity. For dedicated professionals, uncertainty can take many forms, from layoffs and market shifts to the impact of AI. We will come together (virtually) to share ideas and strategies for developing adaptability and a growth mindset to approach current and future challenges. Join Career Education and your Wellesley siblings in a supportive and timely conversation.
‘Designing Your Work Life’ Cohorts
This program is for alums who want to make a professional change, but need inspiration to figure out what that might be. Alumnae Career Advisors Dana Keep and Becky King will facilitate the discussion as a group of Wellesley alums help each other ‘build their way forward’ and design a new direction. Space is limited, and we kindly request that participants commit to all three sessions to ensure cohesiveness and continuity of conversation.
Tuesdays, April 7, 14, 21 2026, Noon – 1:30 ET (note earlier start date)
Alum Webinar: Careers for Environmental Impact Panel
Thursday, April 30
Noon – 1:00 PM ET
Interested in a career in environmental impact? Join this webinar to hear from Wellesley alums about a variety of roles related to environmental issues and consider how to apply your background and transferable skills to these careers.
Alum Career Book Club: Transitions by William Bridges
Thursday, May 14, 2026
Noon – 1:00 PM ET
Celebrating 40 years of the best-selling guide for coping with life's changes, Transitions was named one of the 50 all-time best books in self-help and personal development. Aimed at today's current workers and organizations facing unprecedented change, Transitions takes readers step-by-step through the three perilous stages of any transition, explaining how each stage can be understood and embraced.
Alumnae Career Advancement Team
Alumnae Career Advisors are here for one-on-one advising about career pivots, re-entry into the workforce, resume and cover letter reviews, interview practice, and more. You can schedule an appointment to meet with an Alumnae Career Advisor through Handshake using your Wellesley credentials.
Industry-Specific Advisors
Career Education's Industry-specific Advisors can provide industry expertise for alumnae exploring specific career paths, whether looking to break into a new field or advance in their industries with a competitive edge. Make an appointment on Handshake using your Wellesley credentials.
Resources
Our advisors have written a series of resources to jumpstart your research on a variety of career topics. Browse the links below, and schedule an appointment in Handshake to explore further!
Alumnae Webinars
Wellesley Career Education hosts professional development webinars to support alums at every career stage, often in partnership with alumnae who offer expertise on a specific topic. An archive of past webinars is housed below.
You can also watch a full playlist of our Alum Webinars on Youtube!
Alumnae Career Conversations
Wellesley Career Education regularly hosts career conversations with alums across a range of industries, who have generously offered to share their professional experiences with students and other alums. Recordings of many of these webinars are listed below.
Mentor Students & Connect with the Wellesley network!
The Wellesley Hive is a flexible, interactive virtual space for professional networking and mentorship. Through this Wellesley-exclusive platform, you can connect with alums and students as a mentor, mentee, or both. Log in to the Wellesley Hive using your Wellesley credentials, and follow the guided process to customize your involvement and improve your connections.
Alums and students are connected to The Wellesley Hive, Wellesley’s Mentorship Platform
Countries with members connected to The Wellesley Hive
Fellowships for Alumnae
Fellowships serve as an investment in individuals, for opportunities like:
• studying a language
• conducting academic research
• completing a service project
• pursuing graduate study
• designing and executing an independent project
As an alumna, you still have access to Wellesley Fellowship Program resources and advice from our team. Let us help you make the most of them!
Fulbright Program (rising seniors & graduates)
Supports a year (or occasionally more) of study or research abroad in any discipline, or year-long English teaching assistantships (ETAs) abroad in programs designed by the host countries. Eligible are graduating seniors and graduates who are US citizens. Campus application deadline for Wellesley students and graduates typically in August, after an optional draft deadline in July.
Wellesley College Graduate Fellowships (WCGF—seniors & graduates)
Wellesley College offers a number of fellowships and scholarships for graduate study or research open to Wellesley seniors and graduates. Two awards are open to women graduates of any American institution (the Schimke and the Shackford). Awards are usually made to applicants currently enrolled in or applying to graduate/professional school for the following academic year; there is a single common application process for most of these awards, and the campus deadline is typically in January.
Navigating the Job Search: The 4 Step Model
The four steps in this resource will help keep you focused and productive in your search. You should plan on revisiting each step as your knowledge and understanding of positions and industries grow. Each step below is outlined without a specific industry or position in mind. It is best to schedule an appointment with your Advisor for Career Exploration (ACE) or an Industry-specific Career Advisor to customize your process. The questions we have provided at each step are designed to help you reflect on your preparedness and identify what you may need to move forward in the process.
“For me, the Watson was not about a year-long adventure but about learning to see the possibilities available in the world and realizing that I am capable of pursuing any of them I want.”
Up Skill Resources for Alumnae
For many alumnae, lack of confidence or familiarity with technology is an impediment in the job search. Perhaps you worked in a job that didn’t require much use of technology, or perhaps you have been out of the workforce for a while and are not up to date. You may be confident in some areas and less so in others. Maybe you are curious and like new challenges. There are many resources out there to help you update and improve your technology related skills.
Yenching Academy Scholarship at Peking University (seniors & graduates)
The Yenching Academy of Peking University builds bridges between China and the rest of the world through an interdisciplinary master’s program in China Studies for outstanding graduates from all over the globe. This initiative brings together young people who show promise to lead and innovate in their fields in an intensive learning environment where they can explore China and its role in the world — past, present, and future. The Academy aims to thereby shape a new generation of global citizens with a nuanced understanding of China and its role in the world.
Wellesley is an official Partner Institution for the Yenching Academy: campus deadline typically in November.