A new Employer Advisory Council at Columbus State University is enhancing students’ career prospects with the region’s employers—ranging from internships and co-ops to post-graduate jobs. Its origin is part of a comprehensive university strategy that aligns academics, career coaching and experiential learning to prepare students for the evolving needs of the modern workforce. According to Patrick Keebler, director of Columbus State’s Center for Career Coaching, the council’s main goal is to foster two-way dialogue that benefits both students and the local economy. It aims to establish a direct communication channel between the university and the region’s most influential recruiters and business leaders. “The goal of our new Employer Advisory Council is to enhance communication between Columbus State University and the area’s leading employers that hire our graduates,” Keebler noted. “This will help us better understand their workforce needs and create more opportunities to prepare our students for their careers, enabling the university to continue strengthening the state’s workforce.” By involving employers directly, Columbus State seeks to shift from traditional job postings to a more integrated workforce development approach. “Our Employer Advisory Council isn’t a ‘sit-and-listen’ committee,” Keebler emphasized. “It is designed to be an action-driven body that partners with Columbus State to shape our academic programs, ensure our students are career-ready, and contribute meaningfully to local workforce development.” Keebler emphasized several key areas where employer insight will be essential:
Refining employer talent acquisition: Exploring best practices for employers to effectively connect with today’s students for professional roles.
Prioritizing data-driven success: Analyzing student outcomes to identify where graduates are succeeding and where gaps exist.
Optimizing the use of the Handshake platform: Finding ways to better utilize Columbus State’s Handshake platform that connects students and alumni with open internship, part-time and post-graduate roles.
Expanding high-impact student experiences: Strengthening existing and creating new pathways for students to acquire degree-related field experiences through internships, co-ops and other hands-on learning opportunities.
Spotting trends: Monitoring the university’s awareness of emerging employer needs across local, regional and national levels.
For employers, council involvement also offers brand visibility when competing for top student talent. Keebler highlighted that council members will gain increased exposure on campus, making them the “top-of-mind” choice for students at all stages of their career development. Keebler expects the council to meet every two months—ensuring consistent collaboration, responsiveness to market shifts, and respect for members’ professional obligations. Employers can contact Keebler to learn more about participating in the Employer Advisory Council.
The Employer Advisory Council is part of a career development strategy the university adopted in 2024 when it launched its current five-year strategic plan. In early 2025, the university announced a $4 million upgrade to its student success model, including 40 new International Coaching Federation-certified academic and career success coaches. Through this one-of-a-kind coaching model among Georgia colleges and universities, academic and career success coaches partner to ensure all CSU students are career-ready upon graduation. Career success coaches, like their academic coaching counterparts in the Center for Academic Coaching, specialize in a specific academic area and stay connected with the same students from their first year through graduation and beyond. They offer students personalized, one-on-one career coaching, planning and resources while also connecting them with internships and industry professionals. More recently, Columbus State’s reimagined core curriculum, dubbed “The River,” offers students access to field experiences aligned with their majors starting in their first semester. Course content is customized to their academic interests, and students begin forming social networks within those interests from their very first-class meeting. Activities such as tours and field trips to sites like businesses and museums, VIP guest speakers, and class projects that benefit community and industry partners transform each River class into a “city-as-text” learning experience. “One of our greatest assets at Columbus State University is the city in which our students learn, live and will hopefully lead after they graduate,” said Libby McFalls, interim director of The River program, who helped design the program along with other faculty. “Our River courses turn every corner of the city into our classroom, its historic landscape into our textbooks, and local experts and leaders into our instructors.” The River is just one way the university is advancing the vision CSU President Stuart Rayfield outlined during her 2023 presidential investiture, which calls for every Columbus State undergraduate student to participate in an experiential learning opportunity aligned with their post-graduation goals. Another example is the recently launched Thayer Scholars program—a donor-funded scholarship administered through the Center for Career Coaching that covers living expenses and other obligations, so undergraduate students don’t have to sacrifice high-quality career-readiness experiences due to their financial situation.
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