By providing outlets for institutions to quickly leverage both their inherent strengths and their understanding about the demands of the market, UNCF’s Career Pathways Initiative aims to position Black colleges to meet the needs of their students while they are enrolled, while setting them on a path to explore limitless futures beyond graduation.

In this brief, we share four examples—work and learnings from Norfolk State University, Xavier University, the Carolina Cluster, and Spelman College—for how human-centered design is helping colleges address their changing mandates as their students graduate into a rapidly changing employment ecosystem. With this lens, each of the participating institutions outlined plans to enhance the student experience and improve career outcomes by reimagining program delivery, strengthening institutional capacity, and embracing innovation.