Expedition to Professional Life
Leeds Career Treks let undergrads envision their careers firsthand.
During a trek to the Tersus Solutions factory, students gained direct insight into how the company is working to extend the life of textiles.
One of the unique ways Leeds prepares students for life after graduation is by immersing them in hands-on, real-world experiences. Leeds Career Treks do just that, enabling undergraduate students to explore what it's like to work in their chosen field.
These career-intensive trips are packed with opportunities for students to learn, network, and consider the possibilities for future internships or careers. For one or more days, students tour companies in their industry, typically hosted by Leeds alumni who work there. Students attend presentations and Q&A sessions and often have one-to-one conversations with executives. Evening events offer networking opportunities for students to connect with local alumni.
"This gives our students an opportunity to differentiate themselves," said Matt Fleming, director of operations at the Burridge Center for Finance at Leeds, who accompanies students on career treks in finance. "It's a way to stay engaged with the business community and alumni, too," he added. Frequently, the students network online with the alumni before they go on the trek, Fleming pointed out. Likewise, Leeds often partners with alumni who previously attended career treks as students, so they understand the value proposition. "Alumni often desire to help set up career treks once they get settled in their careers," he said, "It's their way of giving back to Leeds"<.
The career treks program started in 2014 and has served more than 600 undergraduates to date. With support from generous donors, Leeds is able to offer more than 20 treks a year. Students have visited companies in San Francisco, New York City, London, Chicago, Austin, and Denver, among others. "We target the locations where our students are looking for jobs," explained Susan Brodnicki, a senior finance career coach at Leeds.
Finance and tech: A career trek to San Francisco
Typically, a group of about 20 students travel on a trek together to visit a handful of companies. But this year, the Burridge Center for Finance partnered with Angie Vermillion, associate director of Employer Relations at Leeds, to take 40 students on the San Francisco Finance and Tech Career Trek. They visited 10 companies, including Blackrock, Bloomberg, Citigroup, LinkedIn and Salesforce.
Charlie Frehner (Fin, RelEst '26) found immense value in the experience. "Meeting with business leaders and visiting firms in person was a pivotal moment that opened numerous doors and opportunities within finance".
Alumnus Max Phipps (Acct, Fin '22), a technology corporate banking analyst at Citigroup Corporate Banking, met students on their visit and recalled one student who leveraged the opportunity to secure an internship at the company. "He took what he learned there and talked about it and furthered it in his interviews... it was like a well-run campaign to get the internship offer," Phipps said.
Ryan Markus (Bus '26) said there's no better way to get your face in front of employers. "I love San Francisco, want to live there and was fired up about Citi's Tech Corporate Banking program," he said. "I used the connections, stories and learnings I had at that specific networking event in the recruiting process and ended up winning a competitive summer internship".
A career trek to the Big Apple
About half of the participants on the New York Investment Banking Trek last winter secured their summer internships as a result of the trip. "Each visit was structured thoughtfully," said Max Pliego Mendiola (Fin, Acct'26).
"[The trek gave us a realistic, firsthand perspective on what a career in investment banking entails, deepened our understanding of different firms and roles, and helped us build meaningful connections with alumni and peers alike," he added. Thanks to the experience, he secured an internship for the upcoming summer at Guggenheim Securities in Manhattan.
You never know where a career trek will take you! Students have visited The New York Times’ headquarters, soccer clubs around the world and the top of the London Eye (pictured) on past trips.
Growing career opportunities for CU Boulder students
This year, career treks expanded to destinations like Los Angeles and London—a new international trek. In addition, career treks became possible for first-year students through the Career Launchpad program, which offers mini-treks sponsored by the Leeds First-Year Experience Program. Last year, students visited companies including Sprouts, Pepsi, BioMed Realty, and United Airlines.
These experiences give first-year students an introduction to professional environments early on in their education, which gets them thinking about how they might want to apply their degree, according to Mary Guenther, associate director of First-Year Experience and Global Programs.