When she started as an undeclared student at SUNY Oswego, Katie Brown was unsure of her career path. Back at her alma mater, she now works in the Advisement Center to help Lakers find their path.

After trying many different classes, she met with Jackie Wallace, her advisor at the time. “I know I was exacerbated and overwhelmed many times in her office,” Brown said of Wallace, who is now associate director for career education as well as a career coach for exploratory and undeclared students at Career Services.

“She walked me through that, helped me to figure out what my strengths were, my career goals, what I wanted in life,” Brown said. Wallace recommended she take a psychology course, and she fell in love with the field. 

“I just stuck with that all the way through, and I was so happy with that moving forward,” said Brown. 

Originally from Oswego County, the 2018 graduate was drawn to SUNY Oswego not only because her mother was a student, but also because of the variety of majors Oswego offers. “Because I was undeclared and I really didn’t know what I wanted to do, I loved how many options Oswego had,” she said. 

Years later as an advisor, Brown now helps out a variety of students, from economics majors to philosophy majors, figure out their path forward. While she isn’t directly helping undeclared students, she still guides students who aren't sure which path to take, just like she was.

 “I call on my prior experience of being undeclared, and I try to emphasize that to students so that they know, ‘Hey, you’re not alone in this,’” Brown said. 

Team effort

She also refers many students to Wallace at Career Services. “She was obviously such a role model for me, and she was instrumental. She helped me so much,” said Brown.

Wallace’s guidance, along with that of her other advisors, inspired her to continue helping students throughout her career. “I wanted to help students thrive. I wanted to give them a support space, and I wanted to be that person for them,” Brown said.

Brown worked as a guidance counselor for three years but eventually felt burned out due to a lack of community. When she returned to Oswego as an advisor, she felt a sense of togetherness with her colleagues.

“Being in a supportive, positive environment where I can work collectively with my colleagues as a team, I feel more at peace now than I ever was before,” Brown said.

She also described SUNY Oswego as a perfect fit for her because she can use her experience and training as a guidance counselor to help students further their career readiness. 

“I still get to use all of those same skills and be that person, and I think that’s part of why this job has been such a wonderful fit for me,” said Brown.

While Brown may not have had the most certain path at the beginning, with the help of her advisors, she has gone on to find her way by guiding students toward their own futures. 

–- Written by Nina Ottesen of the Class of 2026