This winter, the Career Development Center will officially debut its Liberal Arts to Careers Externship (LACE) program, which ran for the first time as a limited pilot program this summer.

The program will allow Harpur College students who apply and are accepted to spend a number of days over winter break “shadowing” a professional in their chosen career field.

“[It’s] a short-term job-shadowing experience, typically five days in duration,” said Wendy Neuberger, program coordinator for the CDC. “Students are hosted by alumni who volunteer to sponsor a student.”

Each LACE student participant is matched with a Harpur College alumna or alumnus employed in the career field in which the student is interested. The students and alumni with which they are paired get to decide between themselves about the time commitment — between 20 and 40 hours — and externship schedule. Students do not, however, get paid or receive academic credit for the externship.

The alumni sponsors include ones that hold positions at institutions and companies such as New York University, The Travelers Companies, Inc., Goldman Sachs, The New York Times and the South Beach Psychiatric Center, according to Neuberger.

Derek Gumb, a junior majoring in philosophy, politics and law, participated in the LACE pilot program this summer. He said he found out about the program from a flyer he picked up in the Harpur College Academic Advising Office.

Neuberger matched Gumb, an aspiring entrepreneur, with alumnus Fil Conte, who owns and operates his own company, based in Huntington; he sells fire suppression systems to gas stations, restaurants and other businesses. Gumb shadowed Conte one day a week between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m. for six weeks.

Gumb called the externship “definitely worthwhile.”

“He took me to the LIRR [Long Island Rail Road] station, and he looked at the fire suppressors there. He took me to a meeting with other business owners where they shared ideas about running a business,” Gumb said. “I saw his everyday life and it taught me what it was like to be a small business owner.”

Gumb said that another advantage to the externship was that it did not involve a large time commitment. He was able to complete two other internships over the same summer.

Claire Persico, a junior double-majoring in psychology and English, also participated in LACE this summer and called it a “great experience.”

Persico, who said she hopes to become a school psychologist, discovered the new program from an email for Harpur College sophomores that she received last year. She completed her externship at New Rochelle High School (NHRS), where the school principal, Vera Cheek, is a Harpur College alumna.

Once a week, from mid-May to the end of June, Claire took an Amtrak train from New York City to New Rochelle to spend the school day shadowing Cheek and other professionals at NRHS.

“Ms. Cheek introduced me to the school psychologists in the building, as well as various guidance counselors and teachers,” Persico said. “I was able to work one on one with students and learn about the administrative side of the education field. One guidance counselor let me address a group of graduating seniors and give them advice about college. I talked to them about healthy eating habits and having a roommate.”

Persico said the externship helped her become more settled with her career decision.

“I was able to see the impact psychologists and counselors have on students who are in need,” she said.

Harpur College students with at least a 2.75 GPA and a minimum of one year of college experience are eligible to apply to the LACE program. Applications require students to submit a résumé, an essay and a letter of recommendation. The application period is open online until 5 p.m. on Oct. 28, and those who are accepted will be notified by Nov. 18, according to the CDC.

“Preference is given to sophomores because they are at a point in their career development where they are exploring major and career options and learning what careers they can pursue with their liberal arts degree,” Neuberger said. “They might not be ready to commit to an internship, so this is a great way to get exposure to the workplace.”

She added that students are selected on the basis of their complete application and the availability of alumni in their geographic area.

Students can learn more about the LACE program during information sessions scheduled for 4:40 p.m. on Wednesday, Oct. 5 in New University Union room 206 and 4:30 p.m. on Thursday, Oct. 6 in New University Union room 202.