The Parents Fund

Parent Involvement

Parents can get involved in the Career Center in several ways.

Every year, the center organizes more than 75 panel discussions about careers, and parents are welcome to volunteer as panel members. A typical session might be “Careers in Communications” or “Career Options for History Majors.” To participate, contact Jim Sullivan, associate director at the center, at jjs@berkeley.edu.

Parents are also invited to list jobs and internships by submitting them to CalJobs at career.berkeley.edu/Employers/EmpJob.stm. 
One of the best ways for parents to help their own students, says center counselor Suzanne Helbig, is by encouraging them to explore widely during their college years. “Some parents think it’s not safe to investigate lots of different academic fields,” says Helbig, “but in fact, it is.”

All parents are asked to support their students’ education by making an annual gift to The Cal Parents Fund. These gifts support students and faculty directly. For example, past gifts have helped the Career Center hire additional counselors and supported Freshman Seminars and classroom upgrades. To make your Parents Fund gift this year, or to learn about programs your gift supports, go to calparents.berkeley.edu/gifts/ or call 510/642-4138.