2021 Dordt Grads Achieve 100 Percent Career Outcome

One hundred percent of Dordt University’s class of 2021 were employed or were accepted into graduate school within six months of graduation.

“We are so pleased with the outcomes for our graduates,” says Amy Westra, associate director of career development. “This data shows the hard work and dedication of Dordt students and also the value of a Dordt education.”

This data is based off a knowledge rate of 98 percent, which means that there were only six students from the entire graduating class that Career Development was unable to connect with following commencement.

And graduates from the class of 2021 are already doing great things in the places where they have been called. One such graduate is Chloe Hansum (’21). She serves as a fish and wildlife biologist with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in the Sierra and Cascades Mountain division, which is based in Sacramento, California. She gets to live out her faith every day by working with federal agencies to help protect endangered or threatened species such as the fisher weasel and the whitebark pine from extinction.

“Creation care is an essential part of Christianity,” says Hansum. “My job is a way that I can love my neighbors—my non-human neighbors, to be exact. I get to care for species people often forget about or have labeled as unimportant.”
Hansum finds that most days she can relate her work back to something she learned in her classes at Dordt. She especially credits Dordt’s faculty for making a big impact on her journey.

“I would not be where I am today without the professors at Dordt. From answering my many questions on class material, to chatting about Christianity, to talking about the cultural context of Sioux County and the United States as a whole, the professors always took the time to not only invest in my education but also invest in me as a person.”
Alicyn Gerhardt (’21) is a law student at Southern Illinois University School of Law. Going from a small, Christian university to a fast-paced, competitive law school was overwhelming at first, but because of her Dordt education, she has excelled to the top of her class.

“Dordt provided me with unique experiences when compared with my new peers,” she says. “Dordt connected me to friends, students, and professors from all over the nation, as well as internationally; provided many activities and clubs for me to get involved in; and gave me a well-rounded experience both academically and spiritually.”

Being in a close-knit community where it was easy to get involved helped Gerhardt’s law school application stand out more, she says. Plus, her agriculture and business professors helped her work hard and find success.

Consistently high career outcomes are a testament to the collaborative and supportive environment at Dordt, says Westra.

“Everyone at Dordt wants to see our students grow into the men and women they are designed to be. The whole campus truly envelops our students and everyone—from faculty to coaches to on-campus work supervisors, support staff, and alumni—pulls together to help our students reach their goals.”

Bethany Van Voorst