Three students working in a lab wearing face masks

Elevate

16,000–60,000 opportunities every day

More in Elevate

Every day the average brain channels 16,000–60,000 thoughts—ideas, beliefs, dreams. What do you imagine for yourself—and how can you make it a reality?

Your future success deserves a promise—a guarantee.* You need real-world experiences that will launch you into a great career. You want personal mentorship, a customized career plan, and the confidence to land a great job.

Illinois Tech’s one-of-a-kind Elevate program promises that we will make you and your life success our top priority—from high school to career. Make your dream a reality.

View Experiences on Excelerate

Watch this video to learn how to sign up

 

 

Your Elevate Journey

How does our Elevate promise work? Here’s a step-by-step guide describing how we’ll chart your pathway to success.

Student working on equipment

1. Take Part in Hands-on Experiences

  • Internships, research, study away, competitions—find the best experience for you.
  • Begin your Elevate journey with exciting virtual internships, starting in high school.
  • Then participate in at least two guaranteed Elevate experiences as an Illinois Tech undergraduate.*
Adviser speaking to student

2. Create Your Personal Elevate Plan

  • Even before you arrive on campus, a team of mentors will help you craft a personalized plan leading to your best future.
  • You’ll receive continued guidance from a career adviser, academic mentor, and alumni coach.
  • We’ll help you plan everything from your university coursework to your career pathway. This includes connecting you with high-value professional experiences and networking opportunities that will supercharge your career.
student graduating holding up diploma

3. Become Career Ready

  • With a great education and real-world experiences under your belt, you’ll confidently launch into the career you’ve been planning.
  • If you meet the Elevate Promise requirements, we believe you will receive a job offer within six months of graduation.
  • If you don’t, we’ll help you gain additional skills that you may need.*

VIEW EXPERIENCEs ON EXCELERATE

Watch this video to learn how to sign up

* Terms and conditions apply. For instance, students must maintain good academic standing with Illinois Tech and meet Elevate program requirements to remain eligible.

Experience Is the Difference

91%

Of Employers Seek Job Candidates with Work Experience

(National Association of Colleges and Employers)

80%

Average Percent of Eligible Interns Who Receive a Job Offer

(National Association of Colleges and Employers)

92.8%

Illinois Tech Career Placement Rate

(among 2020–21 graduates reporting)

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From Hyperloop to an Internship...Up Next, the Stars

Jonte’ Williams says one of the best things about Illinois Tech and hands-on experiences is expanding on what he knows—and, most importantly, what he doesn’t know.

Jonte’ Williams (Astrophysics and Physics 3rd Year)
Maggie Barclay profile facing left
Real-World Experience

Coursework in artificial intelligence helped Maggie Barclay secure an internship with IBM, where she developed skills to achieve her long-term goals in the field.

Maggie Barclay (Artificial Intelligence/M.A.S. Artificial Intelligence 4th Year)
Barien Gad, spring 2021 SoReMo fellow
Building a Better Community

Providing more access to free menstrual hygiene products will reduce stress and anxiety throughout a menstruating population, as well as increase consistency in classroom attendance

Barien Gad (Biochemistry 3rd Year)
Photo of student Victoria Belotti
Global Exposure

A summer abroad in Scotland allowed Victoria Belotti to learn more about Scottish history, culture, and politics through visiting the places and cities where these events occurred.

Victoria Belotti (Applied Mathematics/Statistics/M.S. CDSOR 2nd Year)
Photo of Greta Vasiliauskaite
Determination to Succeed

While navigating Illinois Tech as a DACA student, Greta Vasiliauskaite gained real-world skills through an internship with an engineering consulting firm.

Greta Vasiliauskaite (Civil Engineering/M.Eng. Environmental Engineering 3rd Year)
Photo of Laasya Devi Annepureddy
A Drive to Help People

Laasya Devi Annepureddy uses undergraduate research opportunities to contribute to more equitable health solutions.

Laasya Devi Annepureddy (Biomedical Engineering 4th Year)
A graduate student works with a microscope in a lab

Your Future Deserves a Guarantee

We’re ready to make a contract for your future. We’re confident that our unique combination of education, guaranteed experiences, and personalized guidance will add up to a great job after graduation. (Illinois Tech graduates earn some of the highest starting salaries in the country.)

Students working in the Idea Shop

Experiences Await

Check out the extensive list of Elevate experiences from which to choose.

View Opportunities
Seth Graham - TY Page

Life-changing Internship

Seth Graham (Mechanical Engineering/M.Eng. Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering 5th Year) explains how an exciting internship at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory and an Illinois Tech education put him on a trajectory for his dream job.

Experience in Action

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DMG MORI

A partnership with the global innovation company DMG MORI allows students to use professional digital-manufacturing equipment and get practical, hands-on experience right on campus.

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Grainger Computing Innovation Prize

This exciting competition at Illinois Tech challenges students to discover creative technology solutions to some of the most pressing global issues facing the world. The 2021 winners developed a sustainable digital currency.

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Design/Build

Architecture students in the Design/Build studio receive hands-on experience in designing, fabricating, and building a structure with a community, with projects taking them around the world. A project in Chile won the 2021 Roberta Feldman Architecture for Social Justice Award Citation of Merit.

Photo of Marissa Redington

Got Skills?

Our Elevate program guarantees that you’ll take part in amazing internship, study away, research, and other experiences that will teach you twenty-first century skills. You’ll practice creativity, problem solving, design thinking, innovation, and teamwork—and connect the dots between your education and the real-world skills employers seek.

See What Marissa Learned
Illinois Tech student speaking to two individuals

Graduate with Confidence

A national survey of college students shows that students who held internships, and those who took part in career preparation activities such as networking and social-capital building, graduate feeling more confident in their workplace skills and career plans than students who did not. Elevate prepares you to hit the ground running when you graduate. (Strada Center for Education Consumer Insights)

“Elevate gave me my first notable professional experience. It opened up networking opportunities as well as my ability to interact with researchers of differing academic backgrounds.”

—Alysia DeSimone (Chemical Engineering 3rd Year), Downingtown, Pennsylvania

“Having an internship at a startup company allows you to have a real impact. You may be working with the CEO or founder of the company and get to see what it's like at a young company.”

—Marissa Redington (Biomedical Engineering/M.S. Biomedical Engineering 2nd Year)

“Being in Chicago made internship and professional opportunities more accessible, with hundreds of positions downtown just a short train ride from campus. My internship at a world-class company, Exelon, was one of the most valuable experiences of my life and led to my job after graduation.”

—Miles Thompson (Business Administration ’20), Associate Supply Business Operations Specialist, Exelon Corporation

“My NASA internship prepared me for college because it taught me skills such as managing time and it also gave me experience in working with teams. My time at NASA prepared me to continue to work hard in school so I can have more internship opportunities in the future.”

—Kaya Jones (Computer Science 2nd Year)

Contact Elevate

Email

elevate@iit.edu

Other Contact Info

For students, families, staff, and faculty: elevate@iit.edu
For corporate partners: corporate.relations@iit.edu

Department Type

Administrative