Meet the Staff

Caroline Kosmel

Student Relations Specialist
ckosmel@niu.edu
815-753-8341

Caroline joined Career Services in 2001. She likes to travel and explore new places, even thinking she might work as a flight attendant someday. Now, she helps students explore potential careers. Her primary role is internship administration.

Jan Wylde

Employer Relations Specialist
jwylde2@niu.edu
815-753-8346

Jan works with employers to help them post jobs/internships and set up interviews with students. She joined Career Services in 2006 and encourages students to finish their degrees: "A bachelor's degree opens up a whole new level of opportunities for you."

Diane Hart

Employer Relations Specialist
dlhart@niu.edu
815-753-7159

B.S., Business Management, Emphasis in Human Resources

Diane joined Career Services in 1999. She coordinates the all-majors internship fair, as well as the intern of the month and intern of the year scholarship programs. She advises students that "it's never too early to begin developing soft skills like communication."

Edward Heard

Assistant Director (Career Advisor)
edwardheard@niu.edu
815-753-8347

Psy.D., Clinical Psychology
Th.M., Theology
B.S., Journalism

Edward began working at NIU in 2004. He focuses on promoting student success and performs strategic outreach to diverse campus communities. He advises students to be flexible as their path evolves: "It's natural to redefine your goals. Be prepared for change."

Teri Schmidgall

Career Advisor
schmidgall@niu.edu
815-753-7201

M.A., Community Counseling
B.A., History and Secondary Education

Teri joined Career Services in 2007. She helps students plan their life and career goals. She encourages students to be open to the unexpected: "Your career path won't be a straight line. There will be detours and obstacles; think of them as opportunities."

Melanie Griegoliet

Coordinator of Professional Development and Training
mgriegoliet@niu.edu
815-753-1650

M.A., Leadership
B.A., Organizational Communication

Melanie works with the Braven Leadership and Career Accelerator course (UNIV 301) in both fall and spring semesters. She began working at NIU in 2020 in Orientation and First Year Programs and joined Career Services in 2022. As a first-generation college student herself, she highly encourages all students to get involved and take advantage of NIU’s academic and cultural resources to bolster your NIU experience that could possibly lead you to discovering lifelong passions or even potential career endeavors.