This summer, the College is working to increase the availability of housing-eligible job opportunities on campus and match students in need with those positions. These efforts come amid concerns about job market instability and the safety of travel abroad for international students.

According to Executive Director of Career Exploration and Development (CXD) Kristin Brennan, in a typical year, there are almost 400 internship or fellowship grants sponsored by CXD, the McKeen Center for the Common Good, academic departments and other groups on campus as well as 50 to 100 on-campus jobs. In total, about 300 students remain on campus for job opportunities at the College or in Maine each summer.

While students generally apply directly to posted positions, Associate Dean for Academic Administration Mike Ranen explained that ahead of this summer, a team of faculty and staff are working to identify students in need of a job or research fellowship and match them directly with available roles.

“The College has made available additional summer opportunities and housing on campus for students whose plans have changed,” Ranen wrote in an email to the Orient. “These additional jobs and matching are new to this summer and due to the unique situation we find ourselves in.”

Brennan noted that many students are struggling to find employment this summer due to the federal hiring freeze, tariffs, funding cuts, canceled National Institute of Justice and National Science Foundation grants and other factors creating instability in the job market.

“Our faculty and staff colleagues in the sciences, in [environmental studies], in education, in government—we’ve met with [them] and we’re …  working together to come up with ideas and supports for students,” Brennan wrote in an email to the Orient. “And students are identifying those challenges [for] us—opportunities lost or canceled or just slowed down.”

One way CXD has responded to this job market has been through its new Accelerator Plus program, funding access to Coursera, Wall Street Prep or Rocket Blocks programs as well as other certifications and projects. According to Brennan, many students applied for this grant, and CXD is looking for ways to support as many of them as possible.

In addition to the job market’s instability, concerns over international travel and safe reentry to the U.S. have presented challenges for some international students. Associate Class Dean Danielle Hussey, who is also the dean for F-1 international students at the College, emphasized that they are working to help international students navigate their individual situations.

“International students are not a monolith, and each of them have specific needs based on their individual circumstances. There is not a one-size-fits-all answer to the current set of concerns, and I encourage international students to reach out to me directly with questions,” Hussey wrote in an email to the Orient.

As part of its efforts to increase summer opportunities, the College aims to ensure support goes to the students who need it most.

“Students who have already identified a challenge traveling away from campus this summer, who have concerns about the ability to return if they travel, will hear directly about these opportunities first,” Brennan wrote. “We anticipate that the roles will be exhausted by meeting the needs of those students. The idea is to try and address the highest need, which is always a challenge, but that’s the intent of the work we’re doing together right now.”

A number of departments and offices across the College are involved with this work, including the President’s Office, Dean of Students, Dean of Student Affairs, CXD, Academic Affairs, Facilities and Administration, Human Resources, Student Employment, Institutional Consulting, Residential Life, Events and Summer Programs and others.

“Almost any time you observe a big challenge and wonder if there are people working on it at Bowdoin, quietly there are a bunch of caring people coming together and working fast and furious to try and generate additional support,” Brennan wrote.