Lauren Payne named director, Center for Career Engagement

GREENVILLE, SC – Lauren Payne has been named director of Furman University’s Center for Career Engagement. She began her duties with the Center in March this year.

Prior to her post at Furman, Payne was associate director of the Career Development Center at the University of San Diego (USD), where among other accomplishments, she developed and piloted a Career Readiness certificate program for the College of Arts and Sciences.

She also served six years as director and associate director of University of California San Diego’s (UCSD) department of Career Education and Advising, where she managed a comprehensive, campus-wide career counseling program designed to empower students and alumni in fulfilling their career goals.

Earlier, as a career advisor for UCSD, Payne counseled students and alumni regarding career decision-making, career exploration, graduate school and job/internship search strategies. She crafted curriculum and taught career planning classes, delivered career planning workshops, and organized events to bolster career success among UCSD students. In her nine years at UCSD, she was twice presented with the Career Services Center Award of Excellence.

In all, Payne brings 14 years of career counseling experience to her role at Furman.

Payne is a 2010 graduate of the National Association of Colleges and Employers (NACE) Management Leadership Institute. She holds a master’s in College Student Development and Counseling from Appalachian State University and a bachelor’s in Psychology from Hillsdale College in Michigan.