Director, Undergraduate Career Education

Laura Garcia has over 15 years of experience in collegiate career services and serves as the Director of Undergraduate Career Education in the Georgia Tech Career Center. Laura leads the team of Career Development Advisors and Career Educators in guiding undergraduate students through their career and professional development journey with the goal of finding career success upon graduation. She manages several large-scale programs, including the Career Coaching Network for faculty and staff, the Jacket Job Ready Challenge, and other major initiatives.

Previously she served as Associate Director for Recruiting and External Relations at the Emory University Career Center where she led the team in connecting employers to students through on-campus interviews, information sessions, career fairs, and other major events. In addition, she proactively partnered with Emory Corporate Relations, Advancement, and the Alumni Association on large-scale employer events and initiatives to bring high-level career opportunities to campus. Prior to her work at Emory, Laura provided career coaching to undergraduate and graduate students of all majors at the University of Georgia and Georgia State University.

She has been involved with the Georgia Association of Colleges and Employers (GACE), SoACE, and NACE through various leadership roles. In 2012, she received the GACE Rising Star award in recognition for her marketing and communication efforts on the behalf of the organization and the NACE Innovation Excellence Award for her communication strategy for the UGA Career Center.

Laura earned a Bachelor of Science in Marketing from Clemson University and a Master of Science in College Student Personnel from the University of Tennessee.