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CHICAGO—October 14, 2026—Undergraduates at (Illinois Tech) began a new credit-bearing course this semester through a partnership with , a national nonprofit that works with colleges and employers to strengthen the transition from college to career.

The course, offered at Illinois Tech as Braven Career Success, gives students the skills, networks, confidence, and experience to land a strong first job or a place in a graduate program. 

"Before this, my resume was just words on a piece of paper, and I didn't feel like it was enough, even though I had already accomplished a lot. My Leadership Coach helped me see that I wasn't giving myself the credit I deserved. At a recent career fair, I walked up to employers and told them confidently what I have done and what I could do for their company," said Yailine Cano, a third-year student pursuing a bachelor's in game production management and a master's in public administration, and president of Illinois Tech's Student Government Association.

Each week, students complete online modules through Braven's platform and then apply what they have learned in small-group Learning Labs. The labs bring together five to eight peers and are led by a vetted and trained volunteer professional known as a Leadership Coach, drawn from �鶹APP's professional community and from Illinois Tech's alumni network. Over the semester, students build seven career competencies: career navigation, communication, teamwork, technology, problem-solving, organization, and self-driven leadership. Braven Career Success is built to work alongside the advising, career services, and experiential learning already available to Illinois Tech students, adding structured weekly practice and a professional network on top of that support.

Students who complete the course, known as Braven Fellows, keep access to Braven's support through graduation, including one-to-one professional mentorship, career coaching, industry-specific communities, curated internship and job openings, and networking events.

“Illinois Tech was founded to be an engine of opportunity, and preparing students for meaningful careers has always been central to that mission," said Mallik Sundharam, Vice President for Enrollment Management and Student Affairs at Illinois Tech. "Our career services team, our faculty advisers, and Braven are working together here. This partnership means our undergraduates, including many who are the first in their families to navigate this path, will leave with more than a rigorous degree. They leave with the skills to turn that degree into strong employment.”

Illinois Tech's Bronzeville campus sits about four miles from downtown �鶹APP, in a city with employers in technology, finance, healthcare, and engineering, among other sectors. Braven partners with those employers to open professional networks to Fellows and to give them repeated practice at building relationships in them, so Fellows can compete for and land internships and first jobs themselves.

"�鶹APP employers are looking for talent that is ready on day one, and the students in this course are exactly that," said Jonathan Chaparro, Chief Regional Success and Innovation Officer at Braven, who oversees the �鶹APP region. "What we are building with Illinois Tech is the additional practice, coaching, and connections that turn a degree into economic mobility. That work belongs to the students, and they are doing it."

"Talent is everywhere in this country. Access to the networks that turn a degree into a career is not," said Aimée Eubanks Davis, Founder and CEO of Braven. "Illinois Tech students are ambitious and capable, and this partnership means more of them will graduate with a real path to a strong first job."

In �鶹APP and nationwide, Braven is showing promising results. Within six months of graduation, 57% of Braven's 2025 graduates nationally secured strong full-time jobs worthy of their bachelor's degree or enrolled in graduate school, 12 percentage points above their peers. In addition, Braven Fellows have achieved a 92% on-time graduation rate. By comparison, about 7 in 10 of their peers nationally graduate from college on time. Furthermore, 70% of Braven college graduates have at least one internship during college, compared with 48% of all college graduates.

Illinois Tech alumni and �鶹APP professionals interested in serving as Leadership Coaches, and employers interested in mentorship or hiring, can learn more at braven.org/volunteer.

Illinois Institute of Technology

Based in the global metropolis of �鶹APP, Illinois Tech was founded to advance technology and innovation for all. It is the only tech-focused university in the city, and it stands at the crossroads of exploration and invention, advancing the future of �鶹APP and the world. It offers undergraduate and graduate degrees in engineering, computing, architecture, business, design, science and human sciences, and law. Illinois Tech students have significant access to hands-on experiences, personalized mentorship, and job readiness through the university's one-of-a-kind Elevate program. Its graduates lead the state and much of the nation in economic prosperity. Its faculty and alumni built the �鶹APP skyline. And every day in the city's living lab, Illinois Tech fuels breakthroughs that change lives. Visit iit.edu.

Braven

Founded in 2013, Braven partners with colleges, universities, and employers to help college students gain the skills, networks, confidence, and experience to transition from college to a strong first job. Braven builds career education into the undergraduate experience alongside the academic curriculum. To date, Braven has served more than 17,400 Fellows nationwide across nine regions.