Launch Career Coaching began as a service offered by our parent company Academic Coaching Associates which provides academic coaching services to high school and college students. We found that as our students were approaching college graduation, parents requested that we begin preparing their child for the transition from college to the professional world. Most of our students struggle with executive functions such as pre-planning, organization, time management, prioritizing, task management, creative problem solving, and follow through. As these are the exact same qualities needed to mount a successful job search, staying with us was a natural progression and Launch Career Coaching was born. We offer private career coaching and also group programs.
Career Launching Experts
Susan V. Schaefer, M.Ed, M.A.T.
Founder & Owner
Susan holds a Master of Arts degree (M.A.T.) in Teaching and a Master of Education degree (M.Ed) and has completed the Career Coaching Mastery Certification Program through C.T.A. (Coach Training Alliance). With a proven record of improving academic success for students both nationally and internationally, Sue is committed to helping students and young adults realize their potential and reach their goals through her successful companies, Academic Coaching Associates (ACA), and Launch Career Coaching. Sue’s expertise is focused on strengthening executive function skills including organization, time management, pre-planning, prioritizing and problem solving. One of the reasons for Sue’s success is her gift for motivating and forming positive connections with her clients.
Sue was recently featured in Innovation Destination Hartford as an entrepreneurial success story for her work in career coaching, specifically with young adults just beginning their careers. She is a volunteer mentor for Untapped Potential, a non-profit organization that helps women who have opted out of the workforce for a period of time to raise their children to opt back in and make a smooth re-entry to the work place.
Christine Riley, M.A.
Career Coach, Transition from College
Christine holds a Master’s Degree (M.A) in Counseling and Clinical Practices and has been part of the University of Hartford team for the past 5 years. She began her career in the Office of Admission and currently is the Assistant Director of the University of Hartford Career Service Office. Her primary goal is to help students acquire the tools needed to make effective career decisions during each phase of their academic career development. As a Career Coach, Christine assists with résumés, cover letters, interviews, and teaches students how to use LinkedIn to network professionally. She can provide self-assessments to assist students in exploring majors and careers as well. Assessment tools can help individuals determine the type of work and environment that are best suited for them by examining their skills and interests. Additionally, she encourages and coaches students how to effectively connect with people in their field of interest through informational interviews. Whether students are just starting out, or have a clear career objective; Christine meets with students individually to assess their individual needs and provide solution focused support.
Andrea Miller, M.Ed., C.T.A.
Lead Career Coach
Andrea holds a Master’s degree in Education (M.Ed.) in General Counseling and is a certified life coach. As the Director of Career Coaching here at Launch, Andrea guides young adults bridging the gap from the life of a college student to a productive, successful member of society.
Andrea worked at the University of Hartford for 21 years in the areas of Academic and Personal Counseling and was Associate Director of the Student Success Center. She also taught a course each semester for undecided students choose a major most suited for them. Andrea is certified in Typefocus, a cutting-edge assessment tool that helps students chose a viable career path. Andrea uses her wealth of experience to help college students and young adults develop organization abilities, problem-solving strategies, and life skills that will lead them to fulfilling careers.
Celia Lofink, Ph.D., M.Ed.
Career Coach
Celia’s depth of experience and astounding success assisting countless recent graduates and young professionals land their first jobs makes her a top-notch Career Coach. She holds a PhD in Education Psychology from the University of Connecticut and a Master of Education from Boston College. Presently, she is the Director of Undergraduate Programs for the Barney School of Business at the University of Hartford. She teaches topics related to career readiness, the mechanics of job searches, interviewing, networking, and internship pursuits. She works with the University’s Office of Career Services and Barney internship coordinators to improve her student’s career development experience.
Celia heads up our Prepare for Takeoff program which guides college students toward picking an appropriate major and helps young adults narrow their career choice. She is a master at honing in on just the right fit for her clients. She also leads our small group programs and works one on one with clients to map out their steps to success. She is proud of the fact that in the eight years she has been career coaching, 93% of the clients she works with have secured placement of their first career job.
Steven J. Schaefer, M.B.A., C.F.A.
Consultant, Careers in Business
Steve brings 30 years of corporate experience in business, specializing in the financial services industry, to the young adults he works with at Launch Career Coaching. Having held the positions of Director at the Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi UFJ, Babson Capital Management, and Allstate Financial, his passion has been on helping those organizations with onboarding, intern evaluations, corporate etiquette, and professionalism with new hires. In addition, Steve applies his extensive business background and experience to help those seeking positions in the corporate world with resume building and editing, business writing, and developing appropriate interview skills.