The Career Development Toolkit includes a self-assessment module. You can also access several assessments through Career Services.
The Career Development Toolkit is an award-winning career resource consisting of modules in Canvas on topics ranging from career exploration, to resume and cover letter to industry-specific modules. A module consists of a series of ordered pages with built-in interactive activities.
All current students have been automatically enrolled and should see the Career Development Toolkit in their Canvas courses. You can also sign in with your NetID and password and self-enroll.
Alumni who had access to Canvas before will have to request Canvas access and then self-enroll.
Faculty and staff can self-enroll as a "student" user or contact career [at] cornell.edu for ideas on how to incorporate Canvas into your course.
The Career Exploration Guide is an excellent workbook to help you explore your interests, skills, strengths, values, and career options. Copies are available in the Human Ecology Career Exploration Center.
Human Ecology's Career Exploration Center provides a friendly environment for students to explore and pursue their career goals with the help of trained student career assistants. All students are welcomed to come anytime during opening hours to receive a walk-in resume critique, explore the different off-campus academic opportunities, read a book from our rich library collection, or take advantage of the numerous other services.
Check out the Career Exploration Center (CEC) site!
Hours
Monday-Thursday: 10:00 am-4:00 pm
Location
1203 MVR Hall
Contact
hecec [at] cornell.edu
International Experience Information Session - Wednesday, September 2 at 4:30 PM, 1157 MVR
Perspectives on Law School Admissions - Thursday, September 3 at 12:30 PM, Zoom
ASC Virtual Alumni Student Forum - Wednesday, October 21 from 4:45 PM - 6:30 PM, G155 MVR
Please continue to check for added Fall events.
When
Summer is an important time for Human Ecology students to gain valuable and sustained career experience and exposure. Most opportunities are found through early preparation and networking. Internship workshops are offered throughout the year in the CHE Office of Student and Career Development and through Cornell Career Services. Check the CHE events calendar and Handshake for details
Off-campus study programs occur during the fall, spring and summer semesters. Students gain internship experience and also earn academic credits. If you plan to participate in one of these programs, it is important to speak with your academic advisors to plan your schedules accordingly.
What
For specific internship information by department, check out the Human Ecology internship guides. They contain job listings, industry websites and other resources, including a list of selected career outcomes per major. Copies of these guides are available in the Career Exploration Center, 1203 MVR.
Cornell Handshake provides access to essential Cornell Career Services resources.
On-campus recruiting
Students who wish to participate in Cornell’s on-campus recruiting program for jobs or internships must take the proper steps to use the system successfully. Please note that this is only one of many ways that students find internships and jobs after they graduate. Many companies that recruit on campus are large organizations with the finances and resources to visit universities. Students should develop additional strategies to supplement their job search.
Important components of the OCR program are company presentations. Some presentations are open to all students while others are limited to those who have been pre-selected to interview with the company. If the presentation is open to the public, you are encouraged to attend. These sessions offer excellent opportunities to learn about various industries and to prepare for future recruiting opportunities.
Networking
Networking through personal and family contacts, faculty connections, peers and alumni is one of the most effective ways to find a job and to advance your professional career.
Career fairs
Cornell Career Services (CCS) sponsors an annual two-day career fair in September that hosts approximately 200 employers, and other fairs in the spring including fairs hosted by individual colleges but open to all Cornell students.
Human Ecology offers workshops every semester to help students prepare for career fairs, including important tips and individual resume critiques.
Salary negotiation
As you navigate the internship and full-time job process, you likely have questions about salary. The Career Development Toolkit: Job Offers is a great resource as you are considering multiple factors before you accept a job offer or sign a contract. The Office of Student and Career Development is always a resource to help you answer questions during this process and we encourage you to schedule a time to meet with us, or with Cornell Career Services.
CHE offers a distinctive undergraduate education for students interested in human health and medicine. You can explore human healthcare needs from perspectives in nutrition and human biology, human development, and design and technology. All our majors provide excellent preparation for health professional schools, including medical and dental schools.
Choosing majors and courses
Your choice of major will add depth and dimension to your understanding of the challenges and discoveries in health exploration and practice. While CHE offers degree programs that include commonly required pre-health courses, you should choose a major that best suits your interests. Graduates of Cornell are accepted to medical and dental schools at the same rate, regardless of their major in the physical or social sciences, as long as they complete the required courses in introductory biology, chemistry, organic chemistry and physics.
Meeting with pre-health advisors and faculty advisors can help you learn about options for choosing your major and completing your requirements. The advisors in the Office of Student and Career Development can help you pursue relevant experiences, reflect on your course choices, and review your academic progress and development.
Current undergraduate students can contact the Human Ecology Office of Student and Career Development to schedule an appointment with a pre-health and academic advisor.
Phone: 607-255-2532
In-Person: 1210 MVR
You can also access the university's Health Professions Advising Center (HPAC).
The most current information for U.S. and Canadian dental schools can be found in the ADEA Official Guide to Dental Schools. Copies can be found in Human Ecology's Career Exploration Center (CEC) in 1203 MVR and the Cornell Career Services library in 103 Barnes Hall.
Gaining clinical experience
Gaining clinical experience through internships and externships is the best way to test your interest in medicine and the allied health careers.
Clinical experience examples include:
- Secure an internship at a hospital, clinic, health center or physician's office by networking.
- Check internship postings in Cornell Handshake.
- Participate in an off-campus study program during an academic semester, summer or winter session.
- Read the postings each week in Communecology, the Human Ecology weekly newsletter
- Check weekly postings in the Career Exploration Center.
- Connect with alumni and peers in CUeLINKS to learn more about their experiences and how they gained exposure to healthcare.
- Join CHE's student organizations.
- Speak with your faculty advisor or CHE's premed advisor and career counselors.
The college also sponsors a student-run organization called the Pre-Professional Association Toward Careers in Health (PATCH). Students can network with classmates and alumni, receive valuable academic and pre-health advising, get connected with college and university health-related resources, visit a medical school, get a peer mentor and more!
Conducting research
Independent research is an excellent opportunity to form valuable connections with a faculty member. However, while medical schools value student research (particularly in the social or physical sciences), it is not required for application unless you're pursuing a combined M.D./Ph.D. degree. It should not take priority over clinical (patient-focused experiences in a healthcare setting), community service, and leadership experiences. Your director of undergraduate studies (DUS) can help you identify appropriate research opportunities.
Applying
The timing of your application to the health professional school of your choice can depend on many variables. It is important to discuss your timeline and application materials with a pre-health advisor. The Pre-Health Guide in Canvas can guide your self-evaluation and supplement conversation with your pre-health advisor. This includes the process to gather letters of recommendation through a Cornell-affiliated PrivateFolio account. The formal Canvas course and self-evaluation process begin during the fall semester before you plan to submit an application.
Transfer students
Transfer students should meet with a CHE pre-health advisor upon matriculation to the college to create a graduation plan in conjunction with the requirements for their major, transfer credits, and interest in a health profession. Understanding your competitiveness and deciding when to apply to medical school depends on individual circumstances and should be discussed with a Human Ecology pre-health advisor.
Helpful resources
Resources from the Health Professions Advising Center (HPAC):
Other resources:
Law schools do not require a core curriculum of courses. However, you are encouraged to take courses that increase skill in communication, writing and analytical thinking. Human Ecology students interested in pursuing a legal education should schedule an appointment to meet with the pre-law advisor in the Student and Career Development Office.
Tips for pre-law students
- Connect early! Discuss your goals with your academic advisor, talk to peers and faculty, and find out about unique opportunities to build on your strengths and interests.
- Schedule an appointment with the pre-law advisor to discuss the law school application process and the undergraduate pre-law experience in Human Ecology.
- Broaden your knowledge by attending pre-law events and programs on campus.
- Consider joining one of Cornell's pre-law student organizations like Minority Undergraduate Law Society (MULS), Phi Alpha Delta (PAD) Pre-Law Fraternity.
- Increase your reading and writing proficiency through academic and extracurricular activities.
Helpful resources
Understanding the role of business in a global society and the factors that influence consumer behavior and decision making are essential in today’s markets. Along with traditional skills, CHE students learn to analyze problems, see possibilities and develop solutions without losing sight of the human component. More than 50% of our graduates find employment in the business sector.
Because the field of “business” is broad, one must be broadly prepared, tested and informed. While there is no structured curriculum or singularly relevant experiences for a career in business, being thoughtful about the choices you make and the experiences you create is important.
Understanding the role you would like to play and talents you have to contribute will help you focus your efforts. Business can mean: human resources, facilities and real estate, project design and management, product development, consulting/ advising, investment, market management, global wealth and more. All require an awareness of opportunity, an understanding of how decisions are made and their impact, whole systems and analytical thinking, precision and strong communication skills.
For more details on career opportunities in business, visit the Career Exploration Center to pick up a fact sheet, review our related library offerings, and understand interviewing techniques that can help you be competitive and successful.
Human Ecology students interested in design careers understand the impact that design has on how we interact with materials and everyday objects, and perform within spaces. Beyond problem-solving, our students use planning, resource management, changing technologies and the strategic use of creativity to transform society.
Students pursue graduate work in design, architecture, business, real estate, engineering and strategic planning. The Career Exploration Center has a collection of sample resumes and portfolios as well as an extensive collection of books related to the field.
Graduate study allows students to deepen existing knowledge and expand professional skills. Human Ecology students pursue a variety of professional and graduate school options including:
- business
- medicine
- policy and law
- clinical psychology
- design
- nutrition and health
- public health
- human services
- education
In considering graduate school and assessing options, students are strongly encouraged to:
- talk with their faculty advisors
- Schedule an appointment to meet with a career development counselor.
- visit the Career Exploration Center in 1203 MVR.
Visit Cornell Career Services graduate study for more information.
Information for alumni
The College of Human Ecology improves human lives in every context, and at every scale, from cells to societies. CHE is one of Cornell University’s four contract colleges — operated by Cornell under contract with New York State — and includes three academic areas: human centered design, nutritional sciences and psychology.
Our Office of Student and Career Development can help employers build productive relationships with college faculty and students. Employer presentations in classrooms offer excellent venues for companies to increase their visibility and educate highly talented students about opportunities in their organizations.
Contact us at 607-255-2532 or by e-mailing humec_students [at] cornell.edu to:
- schedule a visit to talk with faculty and counselors about our programs, majors and students
- recruit students for internships or permanent positions
- post your positions in Human Ecology's weekly electronic newsletter
Human Ecology graduates are prepared for careers in business and management, medicine and health, law and public policy, design and technology, and other fields. Check our Postgraduate Surveys for detailed information.
Employers can meet and recruit students from all colleges through resources provided by Cornell Career Services including:
- Career fairs
- Online postings
- On-campus recruiting