Career Development Center

The Career Development Center strives to educate and empower all students and recent alumni with the knowledge to successfully discover and achieve their career goals. This is accomplished through career interest and personality assessments and counseling, comprehensive job search preparedness programs, and creating connections with employers. The Center also offers assistance and advice regarding the graduate/professional school application process. By providing comprehensive career development guidance, resources, and events, the Career Development Center strives to assist all students and alumni with achieving optimal career success. 

This Day of Giving, every gift matters and we have two funding priorities for this year.  See more information about giving to the Extern Program and the SUIT Fund.  

The Extern Program

Please consider giving to the Extern Program at the Career Development Center at SIU! The Extern Program is an unpaid one-week opportunity during spring break that offers SIU students professional experience and real-world knowledge in their chosen career field while also expanding their professional network. The Career Development Center places students with employers around the country, from Chicago, IL to Orlando, FL! The employers who host our externs are often SIU alumni or other supporters looking to share their knowledge and experience with the next generation of Salukis!

We at the Career Development Center try our best to match extern students with an employer in their preferred location, which is usually where the student has pre-existing accommodations and familiarity, but due to the nature of the experience or career field, the student can be placed in a location where they are responsible for securing accommodations, transportation, and other expenses. For an unpaid opportunity, these expenses can add up and could prevent students from participating in their externship.

By donating to the Extern Program, you will be directly assisting an extern student with:

▪ Cost of living

▪ Transportation

▪ Parking costs

▪ Food cost

▪ Other costs associated with program

Your donation can make the difference to a student who is on the fence about participating due to finances.

The Extern Program is well established; having first started at SIU in 1984, it has since placed over 4,000 Salukis with companies and organizations around the nation to gain first-hand experience. Your generous donation will support the Career Development Center in connecting current students with professionals across the country. To support the EXTERN Program, please select the Mentoring Program Activities Fund.  Thank you in advance for your consideration of donating to the SIU Extern Program!

The Saluki Unpaid Internship Trust (SUIT) Fund

Please consider giving to the Saluki Unpaid Internship Trust (SUIT) Fund at the Career Development Center at SIU! This fund was established to assist students in taking internship opportunities they otherwise could not due to financial restraints. These experiences provide valuable work experience in their field of study and make students more competitive in today’s job market.

The SUIT fund is provided to current students participating in unpaid summer internships. The recipients will be full-time degree seeking undergraduate students who have been enrolled full-time in classes during the previous Fall and Spring semesters. Recipients will also be in good standing with the University, and International students are welcome to apply to the funds. At the time of selection, students will have an internship secured or be in the process of applying/interviewing for internship sites.

Thank you for your consideration of giving to this incredibly important fund, your donation will assist current SIU students in gaining critical hands-on and professional experience, while also giving them an advantage in the job market.