Two out of the four career advisor positions were eliminated in the college’s recent round of staff layoffs. 

Anna Ogier-Bloomer, associate dean of career development and industry relations, confirmed the layoffs at the Career Center in an email to the Chronicle just before school started. 

“I would like to say how grateful our entire team is for the outstanding work of our former colleagues,” Ogier-Bloomer said. “They made an impact on students every day and were important members of the Columbia community.”

Longtime advisors Jennifer Halperin and Tom Joyce will now provide advising services for all students instead of concentrating their work on students in specific areas of study. 

The Career Center will continue to offer the same services, including career advising, recruiting events, networking, resource libraries, job boards, workshops and more, Ogier-Bloomer said.

“Students will also see more opportunities for career advising with our leadership team, myself included, tapping into our collective 40-plus years of career advising experience,” she said.

Gonzalo Guzman confirmed that he was one of the career advisors who lost their jobs. He had been at the college for about three years. The Chronicle is not naming the other advisor because they could not be reached for comment and have not talked publicly about their dismissal.

Reflecting on his time at the college, Guzman said relationships with colleagues and mentors were central to his own career.

“Of course you still need to be able to do the work once you are there, but we all need someone to open that door for us, especially when we are starting out,” Guzman said in an email to the Chronicle.

He offered advice to students, saying the best networking begins in the classroom, by participating in campus-wide events and joining student organizations. 

“The staff and faculty at the college care so deeply for the students and are inspired by the work you all do every day,” he said. “I think it’s important as students that you all feed back into this though. This means going to the events that all of these departments host for you and remembering to engage with all of them as people too.”

Amelia Lutz, Student Government Association president, said losing these career advisors is disappointing because of the knowledge they provided to students.

“It is so incredibly important for students to have consistent and accessible connections with their industries and while for a lot of us this starts in the classroom, it carries over into being able to access resources like the career center,” Lutz said.

Lutz said she still has full faith in the remaining Career Center team to provide students with the resources they need.

“What I do want to emphasize is that I have full trust in the remaining Career Center staff and in their ability to fully support all students moving forward,” Lutz said. “Everyone who works in the Career Center is incredibly talented and each comes with their own connections and knowledge that the students will find incredibly valuable.”

The Career Center is located in the Student Center. When the Chronicle visited on Wednesday, Sept. 9, during the first week of classes, staff were already assisting students with information on jobs and internships.

Ervey Ramirez, a first-year acting for stage and screen major, went to the Career Center to learn more about its services and ask questions about job applications and internships.

“I just came with a bunch of questions and they answered literally all of them,” he said. “It was super quick and good.”

Alumni who used the Career Center said the advisors played an important role in preparing them for their careers.

Andrew Yoo, a film and television alum who graduated in 2024, used the Career Center to help improve his portfolio, search for internships and get assistance on his resume.

But he noticed that some majors had better resources than others. Now that there are only two advisors left, he said he is worried that this will widen that gap in industry knowledge.

“I think it is important for students to go and get some help from these people,” Yoo said. “But from my point of view, I would say that these people may not help you perfectly with job hunting, resume feedback and portfolio help.”

Sam Santana, a 2024 film and television alum, said that his internships with the International Screenwriters’ Association and Apple TV+ Studios wouldn’t have been possible without the support of the Career Center. 

“Columbia’s message is ‘Your creative career starts here,’” Santana said. “But there should be dedicated staff members in place to help with that. Given how challenging the current job market is, especially in creative industries, students need real, accessible career support now more than ever.”

Copy edited by Antonio Chaves