Corporate engagement opportunities
The College of LAS offers a number of opportunities for companies to engage with our outstanding students and faculty. With 615 tenure system faculty and nearly 15,000 students enrolled in 37 academic departments that offer more than 70 majors, the college offers many opportunities to connect with talented students and pursue groundbreaking research collaborations.
Corporate partners are invited to contact Tracy Parish, director of corporate and foundation relations, to learn more about the engagement opportunities outlined below. You may also review the LAS Corporate Engagement 2020-2021 annual report here.
The College of Liberal Arts & Sciences and our campus partners offer many opportunities to connect with the talent you need. The list below includes some of the most effective ways to engage with our students. Please see the campus recruiting guidelines to learn more about policies and best practices related to campus recruiting. We also recommend reviewing the NACE principles for ethical and professional practice.
Illini ACES + LAS Career Fair
Each fall, approximately 2,000 students from colleges across campus attend the ACES + LAS Career Fair, engaging with more than 120 employers to learn about summer leadership and internship programs as well as full-time positions. Please contact Patricia Simpson for information on how to register.
Actuarial Science Club
Meet the Firms
This annual career forum is held each fall and provides a recruiting opportunity for approximately 30 companies primarily representing the insurance and consulting industries. Each participating company has a booth reserved at the venue as well as post-event interview space for on-campus interviews the week after the event.
Modernization Symposium
This annual fall event includes invited guest speakers who share broad perspectives about emerging trends within the insurance industry, a discussion panel, and a networking session with refreshments. Learn more.
Statistics + Mathematics Career Forum
The Statistics & Mathematics Career Forums are held during the fall and spring terms of each academic year. Undergraduate and graduate students majoring in Statistics, Statistics + CS, Mathematics, and Mathematics + CS programs attend this event to network with companies and learn about career opportunities. More information is available by contacting Darren Glosemeyer, MS program director and senior instructor with the Department of Statistics.
Corporate day meet and greet
Engage with students throughout the day by setting up your table, sharing swag and food, and engaging with students. With unlimited access to students, you can field questions about your company, collect resumes, and learn more about what drives students at the University of Illinois.
Career skill development workshops
Employers are encouraged to provide opportunities for learning and professional development through workshops focused on a wide range of skills, such as professional communication, resume writing, interviewing techniques, networking, and career exploration. These workshops are often hosted in collaboration with a career services office, academic unit, or student organization.
Case study and technical competitions
Case study competition
Engage with students from select programs through a case competition that provides employers the opportunity to present a specific problem and related data that students will leverage to propose a solution. These events allow students to highlight their technical, communication, and teamwork skills. These are typically one-day events involving teams of 4-5 students and one or two rounds of evaluation by a panel of professionals. Typically, promotion is managed by the host unit and prizes for the winning team(s) are provided by the company.
Illini Statistics Club Datathon
The Illinois Datathon is a weekend-long event cosponsored by the Illini Statistics Club, the Department of Statistics, and corporate partners from diverse industries. Approximately 400 student participants—including statistics, mathematics, and engineering majors—have 36 hours to predict and discover insights based on a provided dataset and publicly available data. The competition is scored through a variety of metrics, including statistical model accuracy, presentation, and creativity. Student participants not only gain valuable experience dealing with imperfect data and designing a practical approach to solve a business problem but also have the opportunity to network and participate in workshops led by corporate sponsors.
Unit Career Services and Corporate Engagement Contacts
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Unit |
Contact |
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hireillini@illinois.edu |
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econ-careers@illinois.edu |
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humanitiesprc@illinois.edu |
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las-lifecareerdesign@illinois.edu |
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careers@scs.illinois.edu |
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stat-careers@illinois.edu |
Action learning and research
Corporate partners can sponsor an action learning project that engages graduate and undergraduate students in the process of using real data to solve real-world business problems. Through this process, students develop critical professional skills such as critical thinking, teamwork, and communication, and employers have the opportunity to identify outstanding talent for their recruiting pipeline. The following are organizations that engage with companies in action learning projects.
Illinois Geometry Lab
The Illinois Geometry Lab (IGL) showcases the mathematical talents of undergraduate students at the University of Illinois. An increasingly diverse portfolio of research projects contributes to many fields within both pure and applied mathematics. Students analyze problems related to dynamical systems, hyperbolic geometry, number theory, symplectic geometry, urban traffic planning, virtual reality, and social network analysis. Work done in the IGL continues to be recognized, both locally and nationally. Learn more.
iRisk Lab
The Illinois Risk Lab is intended to facilitate integration of discovery-based learning experience with state-of-the-art academic and practical research in all areas of risk analysis and advanced analytics. Undergraduate and graduate students from all disciplines across campus participate in the lab. Learn more.
Scholarships, fellowships, and awards
Corporate partners can support Illinois students with various awards through one time or endowed gifts. These awards can be limited to specific students based on employer-defined criteria such as major, year in school, G.P.A., etc. These awards are a great way to connect with outstanding talent in target areas of study at the undergraduate and graduate level.
Student organizations
The College of LAS is home to approximately 50 student organizations ranging from the American Institute Chemical Engineers and Illini Statistics Club to Illini Women in Economics and the Association for Women in Mathematics. Corporate partners are often invited to sponsor professional development and networking events with registered student organizations across the college.
For more than 100 years, the College of LAS has played a pivotal role in education and research on the University of Illinois campus. With upwards of $75.1 million in annual funding, faculty and students are pursuing cutting-edge research that's changing the world.
Biological sciences
- School of Molecular & Cellular Biology
- Center for Biophysics and Quantitative Biology
- Department of Entomology
- Ecology, Evolution, & Conservation Biology
- Evolution, Ecology, & Behavior
- Theoretical and Computational Biophysics Group
Chemical sciences and biochemistry
- Biochemistry (School of Molecular and Cellular Biology)
- Chemistry
- Chemical & Biomolecular Engineering
Mathematical sciences
Physical sciences
Access and Achievement Program*
The Access and Achievement Program (AAP) provides retention services to LAS students affiliated with the Educational Opportunities Program and the President’s Award Program at the University of Illinois. Through a supportive learning environment, the AAP team works to connect students with university resources that complement their academic talents and will help shape their academic paths and ambitions. AAP offers solid academic support, promotes leadership and self-advocacy, and identifies opportunities for outreach, research, and scholarship.
*Some individual units have stand-alone diversity programs and initiatives as well
Corporate partners can increase brand recognition on campus and make a lasting impact that supports many future generations of Illinois students through supporting current facilities improvement projects. Corporate partners will be recognized with a physical public acknowledgement, such as a plaque in the spaces for which they provide support. The following is a list of current projects that will support teaching and research and will promote your corporate brand.
Campaign for Altgeld and Illini Halls
The University of Illinois is embarking on a project to restore and renovate Altgeld Hall and replace its neighbor across Wright Street, Illini Hall, with a new building. Funds from the state, campus, and private donors will support the projected $192 million cost of the project. We invite you to partner with us to build the future for our campus and its students while also promoting your employer brand to some of the most talented students on our campus. Learn more.
Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering – Unit Operations Laboratory
The School of Chemical Sciences and School of Molecular & Cellular Biology are teaming up to transform the second floor of Noyes Laboratory, a National Chemical Landmark Building on the Quad next to the Union, into a modern instructional facility for STEM undergraduates in LAS and from all over campus. This renovated facility will include a modern and safe synthetic chemistry lab, a suite of instrumentation and operations labs for Chemical and Biomolecular Engineers, and a modern classroom and meeting space controlled by SMCB and shared with other LAS units.
The Corporate Affiliate Program provides broad access to student talent in select units of the College of Liberal Arts & Sciences. Faculty leadership in individual units will collaborate with corporate relations to develop a suite of engagement opportunities within their units for corporate partners to select from in order to create a comprehensive student engagement strategy for each partner.
Corporate Affiliate Program participants will receive exclusive benefits including access to students, increased brand recognition and visibility on campus, and a simplified process for partnering with units in the College of Liberal Arts & Sciences.
Interested in learning more? Check out full program details here.
Current participants include:
