Hi, Reader!
A director once told me about a new initiative her office launched. The design was thoughtful. The resources were there. The student impact was clear.
But the project stalled. Students weren’t engaging, senior leaders weren’t convinced, and the whole thing remained “a career services project” rather than a campus-wide priority.
The missing link? Faculty.
If you’ve ever tried to partner with faculty and felt like you were speaking another language, you’re not alone.
But here’s the truth: without faculty, our efforts to scale impact and embed equity will always fall short. And when we do bring them in? The ripple effect is transformational.
Faculty want to help—they just don’t always know how
Here’s something I tell my clients all the time: most faculty genuinely want to support students’ career development. They’re not resisting out of apathy. They care deeply.
The problem?
We’re asking disciplinary experts to operate at a pretty high level in another discipline (career) without giving them a playbook. Imagine being asked to lecture on astrophysics tomorrow. (I’d be in the back row Googling, “So… are we calling Pluto a planet again, or not?”).
Faculty need something clear and practical to say to students that aligns with the career center. Without it, career slips to the bottom of their very long to-do lists, and given how long those lists already are, that’s basically the abyss.
The stakes are higher than ever
Faculty care about these stakes—because they’re living them every day:
- Enrollment pressures: Humanities and social sciences are seeing drops in enrollment. Programs are being cut. Faculty worry about the future of their disciplines.
- Student expectations: Students want proof they’re gaining skills that matter. If they can’t articulate those skills, they question their major or even the value of college itself.
- Mental health: Career uncertainty is now one of the top stressors for students. When students can see the value in what they’re learning, anxiety eases and confidence builds.
- Retention: When students connect coursework to future opportunity, they’re more likely to persist. And faculty want their students to stay enrolled and succeed.
And, as you know, faculty are already teaching the very skills employers value. The opportunity is to help students connect the dots, and to make it easy for faculty to be part of that process.
Why faculty buy-in matters
Faculty bring something we can’t replicate:
- Reach: Every student goes to class. Not every student comes to us.
- Credibility: Students believe it when their professors say it.
- Influence: Faculty have the ear of presidents, provosts, alumni, and donors.
- Broad-based: Career becomes baked into the student experience.
That’s why faculty partnership is mission-critical.
Why it feels uphill
Even with goodwill, barriers are everywhere:
- Faculty workloads are overflowing.
- Silos make collaboration harder than assembling IKEA furniture without the little Allen wrench.
- Old perceptions linger—that career services is vocational, remedial, or “not their job.”
🎯 The challenge isn’t lack of interest. It’s lack of clarity and support.
And the only way to know what’s missing? Get out and talk to faculty. There’s no substitute for hearing directly—straight from the horse’s mouth—what would make partnering easier.
Six strategies to move the needle
Here’s where to start, while remembering that step zero is actually having conversations with faculty.
1. Know your levers
Deans, chairs, and program directors shape norms. Equip them with data, student stories, and evidence of impact.
Try this: After sharing a retention stat, ask: “What would make faculty in your department feel supported?”
2. Clarify roles
Faculty don’t need to be career advisors. They teach. We equip.
Try this: Draft a one-page “what we do vs. what you can do.” Test it with a faculty member: “Would this actually help you?”
3. Add value
Faculty will only engage if it helps them do what they already care about: teaching and mentoring.
Try this: Build a plug-and-play assignment and ask, “Would this save you time?”
4. Identify champions
Some faculty are already doing the work. Support them, celebrate them, and amplify their voices.
Try this: Invite a champion for coffee and ask, “What could we do to make this partnership easier?” (And yes, sometimes caffeine is the real career services strategy.)
5. Make it easy
If resources are buried three clicks deep in a system no one remembers the password for… game over.
Try this: Ask a faculty partner to test your resource. If it takes more than 30 seconds, simplify.
6. Celebrate involvement
Recognition builds momentum. Faculty love to see their peers succeed.
Try this: Send a thank-you note and cc the chair. In academia, thank-you notes are basically currency.
These steps are just the beginning
Start small. Listen carefully. Get feedback.
Once you have traction, you can take it further: pilot integration projects with departments, build faculty learning communities, or collaborate with academic leaders on long-term strategy.
Small moves create momentum that makes bigger change possible.
Final thought
Faculty buy-in isn’t about persuading professors to care about career. Most already do. It’s about showing them how to engage—simply, meaningfully, and in alignment with the academic mission.
When we give them a roadmap, listen to their concerns, and lighten their load, they lean in.
And when they lean in? Students stay enrolled, stress goes down, disciplines strengthen, and career services shifts from a department to a movement.
9So here’s my challenge: This week, don’t just build a resource. Go have a real conversation with a faculty member.
Ask what they’re worried about, what excites them, and what support they wish they had. Bonus points if the conversation doesn’t start with, “Sorry to bother you during office hours…”
Because the best roadmap for faculty engagement? It’s co-authored—with them.
And when faculty are part of the movement, the ripple effect is real.
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