NBEF Develops a Growing Youth Network from New Brunswick

NBEF’s College & Young Professional Network (C&YPN) is an ongoing support system for New Brunswick High School and New Brunswick Health Sciences Technology High School graduates attending colleges, universities and vocational institutes. This trailblazing initiative provides them with college readiness and career development coaching, mentoring, training and special events including career clusters in Engineering and Computer Science, Business and Communications, Psychology and Social Work, and Pre-med and Nursing. NBEF also offers a Pathways to Law School Program, Public Speakers Institute, and Mental Health Platform. We started the NBEF C&YPN in 2011 with 11 students and has grown to over 700 participants.

Our C&YPN component enables us to stay connected with NBEF scholarship recipients and track their progress (along with numerous other NBHS and NBHSTHS graduates pursuing higher education), while providing them with programs and resources that are designed to equip them to compete in our global society.

NBEF begins cultivating and nurturing students during their junior and senior year in high school, setting the stage for their transition into college and beyond. Once they are enrolled in college, NBEF’s C&YPN becomes a link to their future, building their professional portfolio via career development programs, coaching/mentoring, job shadowing, and internship opportunities. A primary aim of the Network is to help ensure that our youth remain focused on completing their college education while at the same time planning for a future career.

Moreover, the NBEF C&YPN provides two major annual activities … our Summer Enrichment and Holiday “Prep for Success” events. These “conference style” gatherings held in August and late December (during school breaks) include networking activities, motivational speakers, and workshops covering key areas such as Career Exploration, Resume and Cover Letter Writing, Time/Stress Management, Mock Interview Skills, Elevator Pitch, Dress for Success and Dining Etiquette tips, College/Workplace Diversity & Inclusion, etc. Attendance has more than tripled in recent years, now attracting over 100 New Brunswick youth at each event.