Southwestern’s Career Services Office was recently ranked #1 in Texas and #7 in the country for Best Career/Job Placement Services by the Princeton Review.

The ranking was based on responses from 126,000 students who were surveyed for the 2014 edition of The Best 378 Colleges, which is published by The Princeton Review. 

Daniel Orozco, director of Career Services, said the ranking doesn’t come as a surprise to him.

“Southwestern has a very strong Career Services team,” he said. “They have been very intentional and successful in their efforts to connect with students, faculty, staff and alumni.”

In addition to Orozco, the Career Services staff includes Associate Director Alexandra Anderson, Internship Coordinator Maria Kruger and Secretary Dana Luna. Two mannequins also play an important role in the office – Ichabod and Antoinette.

Ichabod and Antoinette show students how to dress properly for interviews and have a Facebook page that helps students keep up with all the programs offered by Career Services. This innovative use of social media won Career Services the 2011 National Association of College and Employers (NACE) Innovation Excellence Award in the marketing and branding category.

Career Services offers a variety of programs throughout the year, from resume writing workshops to job and graduate school fairs. Particularly popular programs include the annual “Etiquette Dinner” and a “Career Connections” barbecue on campus that connects students with alumni.

The office also runs a Pirate Apprentice Days program that matches students with alumni who are working in fields they are interested in. Students can shadow those alumni during Winter Break.

Career Services also does plenty of one-on-one counseling. Last year, staff in the office held more than 1,000 individual advising sessions.

The only other school in Texas to make the Princeton Review’s top 10 schools for Best Career/Job Placement Services was Southern Methodist University, which was ranked #8.