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THE
CAREER
ECOSYSTEM

ERA

IN HIGHER
EDUCATION

PODCAST

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ABOUT THE PODCAST
Transforming Career Ecosystems

The Career Ecosystem Era in Higher Education explores how colleges and universities are transforming career education to ensure every student is prepared for meaningful success after graduation. Each episode features leaders and innovators who are building stronger, more integrated career ecosystems on their campuses.

Hosted by Jeremy Podany, founder and CEO of The Career Leadership Collective and author of The Career Ecosystem Era in Higher Education, the podcast offers authentic stories, bold ideas, and practical strategies that drive systemic change across higher education.

The Career Ecosystem Era in Higher Education

Send us your career ecosystem questions, victories, and challenges so we can address them on the show by emailing us at podcast@careerleadershipcollective.com.

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EPISODES
The Career Ecosystem Era in Higher Education Podcast

Episode 11

Has Your Institution Defined Career Learning?

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Guests

  • Nick Cattin, Senior Manager of Consulting, The Career Leadership Collective

  • Monique Frost, Consultant, The Career Leadership Collective

In This Episode

In this podcast, Jeremy, Monique, and Nick discuss why and how colleges must define career learning outcomes to create systemic change in career preparation. Without definition, campuses may experience fragmentation, confusion, and uneven student experiences. And now more than ever, both parents and students expect clarity on what career preparation they're receiving.

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"If you want systemic change to occur...you have to define it. You have to script the path for success."

Jeremy Podany

Mentioned or Related Resources

  • N/A

Episode 10

Building a Trackable and Measurable Career Ecosystem

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Guests

Dr. Tammy Wyatt, Senior Vice Provost for Student Success, University of Texas San Antonio

In This Episode

Career learning is evolving from optional, opt-in services to embedded experiences that reach every student. Dr. Wyatt explains how UTSA developed their "Future Ready Roadrunners" philosophy, which focuses on academic strength, professional preparation, and personal development for all students, and the key focus areas driving the success of this effort.

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"Every student should graduate academically strong, professionally prepared, and personally equipped to thrive."

Dr. Tammy Wyatt

Mentioned or Related Resources

  • N/A

Episode 9

Embedding AI to Increase Competitiveness in the Job Market and Workplace

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Guests

David Marchick, Dean, Kogod School of Business, American University

In This Episode

Bloomberg called The Kogod School of Business at American University the “first AI-first business school”, embedding artificial intelligence across every department, degree, major, and minor. Jeremy and Dean David Marchick discuss why AI innovation is important, how it can be a key component of an integrated career learning ecosystem, and early insights AI infusion is having on student career confidence, enthusiasm, and outcomes.

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"I feel like our faculty have built trust, energy, and enthusiasm among our student body and at AU [regarding AI]. There's a buzz here. I wish I could take credit for it, but all I did was try to create an environment of yes. What our faculty's doing here is really innovative, and in my view, it's going to lead to better outcomes for our students, which is the most important thing."

- David Marchick

Episode 8

How to 'Hack' a Career Ecosystem

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Guests

Scott Carlson, Senior Writer, The Chronicle of Higher Education, and Co-Author of Hacking College

In This Episode

Sensemaking. Leveraging blank spaces. Navigating the curricular maze. These are among the concepts Scott Carlson unpacks in the book Hacking College with co-author Ned Laff. In this episode, Jeremy and Scott discuss philosophical approaches to systematically helping students make the most of college and practical tips for academic advisors, senior leaders, and career centers to continue finding beauty in their work as they develop their career ecosystem. Hacking College is a must-read for any campus building out a sophisticated career ecosystem. 

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 “We are at a time in higher education where a lot of people are talking about what a broken system it is. We know we have to do something about student futures, and we have an opportunity to marshal resources to ask big questions about what the beauty of higher education is that goes beyond just, ‘we are going to get you a job?”

- Scott Carlson

Episode 7

An Institutional Career Learning Pledge

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Guests

Dr. Ora Hirsch Pescovitz, President of Oakland University

In This Episode

What aspects of career learning should not be left to chance in the college student experience? President Pescovitz and her campus community have embedded career learning into multiple aspects of the student experience, and have recently launched the OU Pledge, an initiative to ensure that every Oakland University student receives hands-on or experiential learning. They are embracing the career ecosystem era, leaning into career readiness and affordability, and joining college and university leaders across the country who are seeking to institutionalize the career learning that matters most to students and families.

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 “We believe experiential learning is in the best interest of our students. We have built a system where students engage in at least one and hopefully more than one hands-on experience, and we are now involved with thousands of companies that help to accomplish this.”

- Dr. Ora Hirsch Pescovitz

Mentioned or Related Resources

Episode 6

Top 5 Most Important Career Readiness Trends for Higher Education in 2026

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Guests

Jeremy is the sole speaker on this episode, providing a rare trends talk for listeners.

In This Episode

Welcome to 2026! In this no-guest episode, Jeremy Podany elaborates on the five most important career readiness trends shaping higher education in 2026. He explores what the field is moving away from, toward, and doubling down on, as well as the spark that is needed to catalyze it all. The episode highlights why career learning is no longer optional, how ROI pressures are accelerating change, and what senior campus leaders can and must do now to prepare every student for long-term career success. This is a forward-looking conversation for anyone responsible for the future of student career outcomes.

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 “We’re moving from a world of career centers doing great work for some students to career ecosystems that work for all students….”

- Jeremy Podany

Mentioned or Related Resources

  • The Blog Post that started The Collective in 2017. 

Episode 5


The Big Dilemma: Reach 

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Guests

Nick Cattin, Senior Manager of Consulting, The Career Leadership Collective

Monique Frost, Consultant, The Career Leadership Collective 

In This Episode

Jeremy is joined by two of his consulting colleagues from The Collective as they openly discuss the dilemma many colleges and universities face when trying to reach more students within their current career center model. They discuss how to refine ecosystem efforts to effectively support students' learning. 

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“We are seeing ‘career success’ become a large market factor in why students and families choose their colleges…and career centers are compelled to reach more students…but what happens if all the students come to the career center?”

- Jeremy Podany

Mentioned or Related Resources

  • Dream School by Jeff Selingo

Episode 4

Conceptualizing and Activating a Career Ecosystem with Faculty (Part 2)

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Guests

Dr. Monica Roth Day, Faculty Director of The Career Readiness Project and Social Work Faculty, Metro State University

Dr. Caitlin Mahoney, Associate Professor of Psychology, Metro State University 

In This Episode

Many faculty at Metro State University in Minneapolis, MN, have come together in a community of practice to cultivate a more integrated career ecosystem to benefit their students. In part two of this series, two faculty members dig into what they developed, how they integrated career readiness, the results they are seeing with students, and the joy and further curiosity it has brought them. 

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"Our faculty fellows career readiness cohort created and discussed teaching artifacts that can serve as examples for other faculty about how to do this work easily and effectively…it’s been motivating during a time in higher education where it's been hard to find motivation."

- Dr. Monica Roth Day, Faculty Director of The Career

Readiness Project and Social Work Faculty, Metro State University

Mentioned or Related Resources

Episode 3

Conceptualizing and Activating a Career Ecosystem with Faculty (Part 1)

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Guests

Dr. Monica Roth Day, Faculty Director of The Career Readiness Project and Social Work Faculty, Metro State University

Bill Baldus, Career Center Director, Metro State University

In This Episode

Metro State University in Minneapolis, MN, has built a career education model where faculty are not only involved but feel a sense of ownership. The Career Center has intentionally repositioned itself from the primary service provider to a catalyst for change, empowering faculty to integrate career development directly into the curriculum. Learn how their Faculty Work Group from diverse disciplines shifted faculty mindset toward emphasizing the career relevance of their coursework and the implementation of small, incremental curriculum changes that make career learning more transparent for students.

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"Faculty now have a community of practice on career readiness."

- Dr. Monica Roth Day, Faculty Director of The Career

Readiness Project and Social Work Faculty, Metro State University

Mentioned or Related Resources

Episode 2

Building an Ecosystem to Help Students Explore What Kind of Life They Want to Lead

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Guests

Adam Weinberg, President, Denison University

In This Episode

College Presidents are more in tune than ever before with the need for and benefits of building a strong and effective career readiness ecosystem on their campus. In this episode, President Weinberg speaks to important topics such as why we need to act, how to gain faculty buy-in, skills infusion, bold commitments, career readiness AND a liberal arts education simultaneously, building public trust through career preparation, measurement, and his hopes for the future of higher education. 

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“When we put our flag in the ground and said that we were going to redefine how we prepare students for careers, we stepped back and said, ‘What are the right questions?"

- Adam Weinberg, President, Denison University 

Episode 1

The Big Shift to Career Ecosystems

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Guests

Nick Cattin, Senior Manager of Consulting, The Career Leadership Collective

Monique Frost, Consultant, The Career Leadership Collective 

In This Episode

Once upon a time, just having a career center was enough to satisfy and impress students and families. Today? Not even close. In Episode 1 of The Career Ecosystem Era in Higher Education Podcast, Jeremy chats with his colleagues at The Collective to unpack the big shift toward Career Ecosystems—and why it’s one of the most important transitions higher education can make right now.

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“A Career Ecosystem is way more than a buzzword; it's a movement. That’s why we started this podcast.”

- Jeremy Podany

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