Martha Escalera

I've been in higher education for over 20 years, and I've truly experienced every role in the education pipeline. I started as a student working in education, then became an office assistant, tutor, and worked with K-12 students. After college, I stayed in education and spent about 12 years as a director for federally funded TRIO programs that support first-generation, low-income students getting ready for college. From there, I entered Stanford University where I worked with college students at both the undergraduate and graduate levels, managing diversity programs and helping students continue through the pipeline of being in college, graduating, and entering the workforce. Through that experience, I worked with employers to connect with students who were getting ready to graduate, and I became interested in career coaching. For the past 8 years, I've been a career coach working with students who have questions ranging from 'I've been in college for some time and I don't know what I want to do after college' to 'I'm an engineer and I want to pivot.' I help them leverage their skills, values, and strengths as they prepare for the world of work. I also offer programs to help students prepare for their first job, and I work with alumni who have been out of college for some time and want to make a career pivot or have had challenging experiences navigating the workforce or landing a job. I get to talk to folks about their life every day, and these are big decisions. From 'I have a partner across the country' or 'I want to travel the world and still work' to 'Should I pursue a PhD program or enter the workforce?' These are big life decisions that people are making, and they come chat with me, and we work together to help them navigate that.