After he arrived at Vanderbilt, one of Brien Donahue's first stops was for a visit with his Career Management Center coach. After five years as a financial analyst for a global pharmaceutical company, Brien had concluded that he "wanted to be broader than just a numbers person." Beyond that, his career strategies weren't specific. He assumed that he would enter another field besides health care.

Working with the CMC, says the Indiana native, gave him a clearer sense of direction. "The personal touch of the CMC is one of the most helpful things that Owen has to offer," he says. "We discussed many things about my previous job that I liked and disliked, talked about my goals and what I wanted."

Through his sessions with his CMC coach, Brien decided to narrow his internship search to consulting and corporate strategy. After attending an on-campus breakfast with Cardinal Health (facilitated by the CMC), says Brien, "I realized this was something I was definitely interested in — an industry I knew fairly well, a job function that I found could open many doors, and a location (Columbus, Ohio) that was great."

Now, after a summer internship with Cardinal, Brien was set to begin the next phase of his career with the company upon graduation.

"I came to Vanderbilt looking to experience another industry outside of healthcare, as my entire career had been within the pharmaceutical industry during healthcare reform," says Brien, a huge college sports fan who can be found almost every Friday morning with classmates playing basketball at the Student Rec Center. "But I found a job and opportunity within health care that I am very excited about. I have no regrets about coming to Vanderbilt, and it will be a sad day when I leave."