Meet the Team

As the Executive Director for Career and Immersive Experiences at UCLA, Carina provides direct leadership for the Career Center and oversight for First To Go and the Transfer Student Center.

Carina is a proud UCLA alumna who was a transfer and first-generation student herself, and brings over 23+ years of caring, thoughtful, and supportive student service and leadership experiences to this role. Carina’s passion to help UCLA students reach their personal and professional aspirations runs deep, from her time supporting students as an Academic Advancement Program (AAP) advisor for 17 years to serving in leadership positions over the last 6 years with the Career Center, Transfer Student Center, and Bruin Resource Center.

Carina’s abilities to develop strong relationships and collaborations with staff, faculty, administrators, and students across the campus has enabled her and her teams to deliver innovative programs and initiatives over the years as well as engage in efforts to enhance student access and participation with campus services and information. In her spare time, Carina enjoys spending time with her family and friends.

Kimberly Terrill (she/her) is the Associate Director for Career Education and Development at the UCLA Career Center where she works with an amazing team to support and guide students in reaching their career goals. Kimberly’s own career journey was long and filled with uncertainty. After receiving a Bachelor of Arts degree from Scripps College, Kimberly had difficulty finding her ideal career. Kimberly’s winding path of career discovery, along with a love of learning, eventually led her to a Master of Arts degree at Claremont Graduate University, after which she took a job at a local university and fell in love with higher education. She then earned her Ph.D. in Higher Education from Azusa Pacific University and continued to pursue her passion for working with students by joining the UCLA community. Kimberly has been employed in higher education for 20 years and has extensive experience in career counseling, career development, and education. She has designed and taught numerous career development courses for both undergraduate and graduate-level students. Kimberly’s favorite quote is “Students don’t care what you know until they know you care.” At home, she is probably hanging out with her cats: Ollie and Fluff Muffin.

Jessica Oviedo (she/her) is the Sr. Assistant Director of Career Education and Development at the UCLA Career Center. With over 15 years serving in various career services roles in Higher Education, Jessica has extensive experience supporting students across a variety of academic disciplines and is excited to be able to advise UCLA undergraduates from all majors. Jessica earned her B.A. in Psychology-based Human Relations from Connecticut College and her M.Ed. in College Student Affairs from Azusa Pacific University.

As a first-generation Latina undergraduate student, Jessica was a leader in several campus organizations, worked multiple campus jobs, served as a T.A. in Statistics for Psychology, participated in service learning projects and undergraduate research, and completed an Honors Thesis. These foundational experiences drives the work she does today to support students on their own academic and professional journey. Her advice to students is to ‘say yes’ to the opportunities available to you at UCLA and connect with those around you including faculty, staff, students, and alumni who will encourage, guide, and cheer you on to success.

Erin Brown is the Associate Director for UCLA’s Graduate Career Services, providing career exploration and professional development programming, as well as individual career coaching, to UCLA graduate students. Having completed her PhD in History at UCLA, she has a deep connection to UCLA’s graduate communities and is committed to helping graduate students successfully pursue their career goals. Erin brings a wealth of industry experience to this position, having worked at two multi-national corporations (including Toyota), as well as having founded and operated a preservation consulting firm in northern California. While at UCLA, she taught in multiple departments and was a writing consultant for UCLA’s Gradate Writing Center. She has previously taught at CSU Chico, where she holds a master’s degree in Construction Management. An ardent advocate of thinking outside the box and testing limits, Erin enthusiastically supports students who want to use their graduate training in innovative and unexpected ways.

Experienced and versatile student affairs Executive Director and M.Ed. Program Director and instructor, with a documented record of success in the creation and transformation of student service programs and departments, both small and large (30+ professional staff), that address evolving student needs, campus priorities, and the ongoing struggle to ensure equitable opportunities and outcomes for all students. An inclusive leader, able to motivate staff through the creation of a shared vision and respect for each individual’s strengths and expertise. A student-centered, data-driven change leader, who provides staff with transparency and fosters stability during times of ambiguity, while also modeling and encouraging agility, skill development, and openness to new ways of working. Skills and areas of expertise include strategic planning and implementation, budget development and management, career development, needs assessment, program development and evaluation, curriculum development, strategic investment in and utilization of technology, change management. Over 20 years of teaching experience in both the Humanities and Education at the undergraduate and graduate level. Well-versed in student development theory and the co-curricular needs of different students populations at all levels, from undergraduate to PhD.

Andre Philippo started his academic journey at UCLA, graduating in 2011 with a major in Psychology and a minor in Education. Andre’s academic journey blended with his professional journey as he discovered the world of Student Affairs in UCLA Residential Life (Dykstra Hall, Sproul Hall, Rieber Court). From there he accrued over a decade of Residential Life experience, at UCLA, Marymount California University (which is now UCLA South Bay Campus!) and California State University, Northridge (CSUN). In 2022, Andre received his Masters of Arts in Higher Education Leadership and Policy Studies at CSUN. Soon after, Andre returned to UCLA Residential Life and recently started his role at the UCLA Career Center!  

At the UCLA Career Center, he liaises with the School of Arts & Architecture, the School of Theater, Film & Television, and the School of Music. He also, works with the Bruin Guardian Scholars program cultivating brave spaces and programs for former foster youth. Andre now lives in Rosemead with his wife Jean (who he met on Dykstra 9th floor) and their dog mang0 (yup with a 0!). Andre loves learning about random hobbies and skills, (contact juggling, longboard dancing, etc.); he’s a gamer (Smash and Rocket League are his go to’s); and he has recently gotten back into tennis (he was named after Andre Agassi)! (He also loves parentheticals!) 

What is your favorite UCLA campus spot?  

I always bend the rules with these, I’ll give a couple: I have fond memories in Covel Grand Horizon Ball Room and Northwest Auditorium, because you’re looking at the 2-time Hill’s Best Dance Crew Champion (shout outs to Uh! Crew and Super Sproul Bros, and special honorable shoutouts to Once Upon a Terrace and D-Luvin’ it Crew!).  

Andrea joined the UCLA Career Center in the fall of 2022 and brought with her 16 years of Arts & Culture professional experience in university museums and nonprofits. She has an academic background in Art History and Museum Studies from Florida International University and the University of Washington, respectively. Andrea also enjoys a variety of academic interests and hobbies that run the gamut of STEAM with particular love for motorsports, aviation, and higher education. As Constituent Services Coordinator, she serves the Industry Relations and Experiential Learning team, students, employers, and campus partners by providing information, tools, resources, and Handshake support, as well as by connecting people. She informs her work and projects with solid principles and ethics that help advance the Career Center’s and UCLA’s missions.

Armine earned her B.A. in Psychology and M.S. in College and Career Counseling from Cal State Northridge. Prior to her role at UCLA, Armine worked in both academic and career counseling at multiple campuses such as CSU Los Angeles, CSU Northridge, Pasadena City College, and Cal Lutheran University. Through her professional experiences, she realized her passion for career development and hopes to motivate, educate, and guide students to reach success and fulfillment. In her current role as Assistant Director of Undergraduate Education & Development, Armine provides career counseling to Social Science and Humanities majors, as well as to Pre-Law students. She also serves as the liaison to the Transfer Student Center and the Humanities Career Panel Series. In addition to providing career counseling and developing career educational workshops/events for students, Armine collaborates with her colleague, Roni Roofian, in managing and supervising the Career Peer Intern program. One piece of advice Armine shares with students is “It’s okay to not know where you’re going and you don’t have to have it all figured out. Career development is a lifelong process.”

Eddie Cleofe is the Assistant Director, Masters Students at the UCLA Career Center, where he leads the analysis, design, development, implementation, and evaluation of programming and resources designed to address the unique needs and strengths of UCLA’s 7000+ master’s students. He started his career in higher ed administration while an undergrad at Brown University, where he coordinated events and implemented programming for student of color outreach and recruitment with the Office of College Admission. Before joining UCLA, Eddie worked for Youth Development Executives of King County in Seattle, Washington, where he created and facilitated trainings and designed professional development resources for employees of over 115 member organizations in the youth-serving non-profit sector.

Eddie is also a PhD candidate at the Cotsen Institute of Archaeology and serves as the human skeletal remains specialist for the Bicol Archaeological Project. His research explores indigenous responses to Spanish colonialism in the early modern Philippines, and his dissertation project examines changes in funerary practices, grave goods, and skeletal biology in a cemetery used for over 5 centuries in the Bicol region of the Philippines.

Elyse Gueidon is the Assistant Director for STEM PhD Students at UCLA’s Career Center, where she oversees programming and projects to support the unique career development needs of UCLA’s STEM and Health Sciences PhD students. As a UCLA PhD in French & Francophone Studies, Elyse is deeply committed to helping ALL graduate students thrive at and beyond UCLA and has spent the past seven years working in graduate student services at UCLA across various departments, offices, centers, and student advocacy groups including the Graduate Student Association (GSA), the Graduate Student Resource Center (GSRC), the Center for Teaching and Learning (TLC), and at the Graduate and Professional Student Alumni (GPSA) Network, which she co-founded. Elyse is dedicated to equipping and empowering graduate students to think creatively about the career paths open to them and transition successfully to the one of their choice.

Before coming to UCLA, she earned a BA in French Language & Literature from the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor. During this time, she began interning at Freedom House Detroit, a non-profit organization that provides wraparound services to individuals seeking humanitarian protections in the United States. There she discovered her passion for helping people to pursue their career goals while facilitating career preparedness programs for clients.

EMPLOYERS in Business Industries: Book a meeting with me here!

Halee has been in the University Recruiting space since 2019. Originally from a small rural town, education challenged her and changed her life. Halee earned her Bachelor’s degree in Business Management from Western Washington University, and although she loved her studies, the connection from college to career wasn’t clear or easy to navigate for her. That’s why she loves helping students make that connection today—after working so hard for your degree, you deserve to work in a field that is fulfilling and meaningful to you!

Through positive mentorship and digging into her own personal values and interests, she pivoted and moved to the Inland Empire to pursue a Master’s of Science in College Counseling and Student Development from Azusa Pacific University.

Halee is passionate about student career readiness and the value that making genuine connections in college can have on the pursuit of upward social mobility, workplace fulfillment, and lifetime mental health & wellbeing. Halee’s favorite quote is from Elenaor Roosevelt: “The future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams.”

As Industry Relations Manager for Business Services, she strives to create meaningful connections between UCLA students and the employers of their dreams.

Jasmine Miranda is the Program Specialist for the UCLA Career Center. Jasmine is our first point of contact in serving our UCLA students, faculty, staff, and campus partners who are seeking guidance and support on Career Center resources and services. She also manages the data collection for the Career Education team, assists with event planning and programming, and collaborates with our Industry Relations team to educate undergraduate students during Internship Lab. Prior to her role as a Program Specialist and extensive experience in advising and student advocacy, Jasmine was the Student Services Advisor for the Career Center, volunteered for non-profit organizations, was a research assistant at the UCLA language acquisition lab, and a Career Peer for 2 years during her time in undergrad. Jasmine received her B.A. from UCLA and will begin graduate school Fall 2024 at UCLA. Jasmine is passionate about serving students and is committed to fostering an inclusive environment to ensure that all student identities and affinities are welcomed and celebrated. In her free time, Jasmine enjoys stargazing, golfing, reading, and walks on the beach.

Jeffrey Janis has worked in the non-profit sector for most of his adult life. He focused most of his career on major gifts and he has raised more than $60 million. When he was 44, he became a Peace Corps Volunteer in Ukraine and worked with non-profits helping them with fundraising, grant writing, and strategic planning. While in Ukraine, his secondary projects included an English Club, Chair of the HIV/AIDS group, and he taught American Sign Language to deaf Ukrainians. He currently works for the UCLA Career Center as the Peace Corps Campus Recruiter. His job is to work with UCLA students, faculty, staff, and alumni to help them decide if they want to apply to the Peace Corps and then help with the application process.

Jeffrey has a B.A. in Psychology from The George Washington University and an MBA with a focus in non-profit management from the American Jewish University in Los Angeles. In his free time, he is on the Board of National Peace Corps Association, and is an avid traveller having been to more than 55 countries.

Office Hours: Thursdays, 2:00-4:30

Krisztina joined the UCLA Career Center as a Career Counselor in 2011. Her background is diverse, both culturally and professionally. She is Hungarian, born and raised in Romania, and has lived in California for over 30 years. Before finding her true calling as a career counselor, she worked in various fields such as restaurant management, customer service, the non-profit sector, as well as the media industry. When advising students in search of their dream careers, she capitalizes on her diverse professional experiences and draws on the life lessons she has learned along the way. She holds a B.A. in Economics with a minor in Business Administration from California State University, Northridge, where she also completed her M.S. in Counseling with a specialization in Career Counseling.

In her role as Assistant Director of Undergraduate Education & Development (Pre-Health Initiatives), she aims to inspire, support and guide students to find and fulfill their career dreams and aspirations. Krisztina provides career counseling to life science, physical science and engineering majors, as well as to students planning to build a career in medicine and healthcare. She also serves as the liaison to the Veteran Resources Center and is responsible for all pre-med/pre-health programming at the Career Center. Her counseling philosophy is that nothing should be deemed impossible until tried (multiple times).

Lilia Elias is an Industry Relations Manager with over 20 years experience in career services.  Lilia is dedicated to assisting employers within the Entertainment, Consumer Services and Health Industries make impactful connections at UCLA.  As a multicultural woman with a background in psychology and criminal justice, Lilia extremely values Justice, Diversity, Equity and Inclusion.

When Lilia is not connecting students with meaningful opportunities, she volunteers at her local non-profit organizations assisting senior citizens, animals and expanding the world of arts in her community.

Luke Cheves is a Marketing graduate from Texas Tech University, and throughout his college tenure planned and orchestrated large social events for the student body and fell in love with creating community. The skills he learned throughout college have allowed him to grow into a professional career within event coordinating. Luke enjoys bringing students and employers together at UCLA to foster valuable connections, and helping individuals on their career paths. Luke moved to the LA area to hike, surf, and enjoy the outdoors. When not working, you can find him at the beach! 

Maria José, MJ for short, is a two-time alumna of Mount Saint Mary’s University, Los Angeles, where she received a Master of Science in Counseling Psychology and a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology with an emphasis in Child and Adolescent Psychology. As a first-generation Latina, navigating higher education and her professional career presented various challenges, finding herself lost battling one after another. She later realized that these obstacles only supported her journey in clarifying her true passion for guiding others to discover their unique path to fulfillment. Her experiences fuel her commitment to serving and impacting individuals. Prior to entering her role with the UCLA Career Center, she worked in career development, student success, and counseling positions at Cal State Dominguez Hills and Mount Saint Mary’s University, Los Angeles. In her current role as Assistant Director of Undergraduate Career Education and Development, MJ provides career counseling to Humanities and Social Science undergraduate students. She is also the proud liaison to the First To Go and Transfer Student Center Offices. MJ is excited to continue serving and working towards educating and preparing students as they continue to grow, learn, develop confidence, and evolve in their career journey. She reminds students that “self-awareness is the greatest strength you can possess in achieving career fulfillment.”

Melisa is the Assistant Director of Career Education & Development for UCLA Athletics. Melisa graduated from Cal-State Northridge with a Bachelor of Arts in Liberal Studies and graduated from Mount Saint Mary’s University with a Master of Science in Education. Prior to joining UCLA Athletics, Melisa worked as teacher and administrator in the K-12 setting for 7 years. She then transitioned into higher education at UCLA, working in the Office of Academic Excellence Peer Learning as a Program Assistant and then transitioning into her current position with the Career Center. Melisa has built a rapport with our student-athletes and is responsible for career development programming and advising. UCLA Athletics and the UCLA Career Center are partnering to help bridge the gap and make sure all student-athletes are equipped and prepared for their career journey. Melisa works 3 days in athletics and 2 days in the Career Center ensuring our student-athletes are taking advantage of the great services and programming provided. She reminds all her students to be lifelong learners and enjoy the career journey!

Roni Lavi Roofian has been part of the Bruin Family over the last 15 years. She is a UCLA alumna with her Bachelor of Arts in Sociology and received her Masters of Science from Cal State Northridge in Career Counseling. She continued her career as an Undergraduate Admissions Advisor for the UCLA Undergraduate Admissions Office and is now an Assistant Director at the UCLA Career Center. She has extensive experience in Student Affairs working daily with UCLA students, faculty, and staff. As an Assistant Director she works with STEM Undergraduate Students in their career and life design goals. Roni provides students career services in areas such as career development, job and internship search, and pre-med, pre-health/graduate and professional school advising. She also collaborates individually with faculty and staff within the Physical and Life Sciences divisions to provide targeted programing to students and while making connections with alumni. Roni has several year of experience developing and programing campus wide programs such as leading the Career Ready Bootcamp (CRB) program, Career Exploration in Science and Math series, and collaborating with her colleague Armine Kulikyan in managing and supervising the Career Peer Internships. She enjoys collaborating with students, staff and faculty to provide best service possible.   

Sanaz Nabati has been part of the UCLA Career Center for the last 16 years. She is a double Alumna of California State University, Northridge with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Psychology and a Masters of Science in Educational Psychology with a Specialization in Career Counseling. With experience in non-profit, industry, community college, and four year institutions, she serves undergraduate students in all majors as Assistant Director of Undergraduate Education and Development. Sanaz also serves as the liaison to several campus departments including the Dashew Center for International Students & Scholars and the Center for Accessible Education for students with disabilities; she also heads the Pre-law advising and programming initiatives. In her liaison roles, she collaborates with departments to assist students with disabilities, international students, and students interested in international careers. Sanaz provides student support in areas such as career development, job and internship search, and advising for undergraduate students interested in graduate and professional schools, including Pre-Health, Pre-Law, Pre-MBA, and Psychology. Her aim is to provide a transformational and impactful experience when counseling students in facilitating their career development and setting and meeting their goals. She enjoys collaborating with students, staff, and faculty and providing the best service possible.

Stella Petrosyan joined the Career Center in 2019 and currently serves as the Industry Relations Manager for Engineering & Technology Industries. She works closely with the Samueli School of Engineering to identify areas of synergy, create pathways for industry collaboration, and develop innovative programming. Through a data-driven approach, she maintains a deep understanding of the dynamic nature of industry trends and student engagement.  

 Stella received her B.A. in Economics/Administrative Studies from the University of California, Riverside and is currently pursuing her MBA at UCLA Anderson School of Management. 

Tim Mar is an Industry Relations Manager with over 20 years of experience in university and career services. As an Industry Relations Manager, Tim specializes in working with students and public service industry employers to make meaningful connections with each other. He also serves as the program manager for the UCDC Summer in Washington program supporting a cohort of Bruins each summer chosen to live in the UC Washington Center as they intern in Washington D.C. Tim is a Bruin alum with a Bachelors of Arts in Sociology. 

Wendy began her career in higher education in 2006 as Program Manager for Private Scholarship Funds at University of Detroit Mercy (UDM).  In 2014 she moved into the role of Director of Career Services and Cooperative Education at UDM for the College of Engineering and Science.  In that role she taught undergraduate courses in cooperative education and professional development and was responsible for the direction and management of the college’s experiential learning program.  Wendy received both her Bachelor of Arts in Legal Administration and MBA from University of Detroit Mercy and is currently a 3L at Purdue Global University Law School.  Fun Fact:  I am a background actor for Central Casting and have worked on a number of television shows, most recently Grey’s Anatomy.

Yennifer has worked within UCLA Student Affairs for the past 8 years during her undergraduate education and continued working within student affairs as a full-time professional staff post-graduation. As a highly organized and resourceful individual, she is able to contribute her skills in managing internal operations and communications. She currently assists the Director, leadership board and wider Career Center in the shared values of creating socially conscious environment dedicated to improving and shaping the future.