How Vaughn College Career Services Supports Alumni Through Career Pivots
Not every graduate’s career dreams come true on the first shot. Here’s how Vaughn’s Career Services helped two alumni change jobs and get on track for successful new careers.
“It’s important that we let students know that a career is a journey that is not always linear,” said Chaundra Daniels, director of career services. “A career can pivot. It can zig and zag and lead you places you might not think you’d ever go. That’s why we want students and alumni to know that career services is here to support their career success through graduation and after—we don’t stop when they walk out the door. And I think that Nick and Katherine each found out that we mean it when we say that Vaughn graduates can come back to us and get help any time.”
Daniels is referring to Nick Singleman ’24, who received his associate degree in airport management, and Katherine Inamagua ’19, who received her bachelor’s degree in aeronautical sciences at Vaughn, both of whom are happy to share their stories about making a career pivot and how Daniels and the entire career services department helped them arrive at successful outcomes.
NICK’S STORY: LANDING IN THE WRONG PLACE
From Vaughn College to the FAA Academy: Nick Singleman’s Air Traffic Control Path
When Singleman qualified for air traffic control at the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Academy in Oklahoma City in 2024 and was assigned to FAA air traffic control in Fairbanks, Alaska, he was excited about the opportunity to pursue the career he had set his sights on when he enrolled at Vaughn College. Growing up on Long Island, his mother employed at Lufthansa, Singleman learned about the Air Traffic-Collegiate Training Initiative (AT-CTI) from his aunt and had decided that Vaughn’s program, combined with an associate degree in airport management, was the best path to take. During his student years, he enjoyed two airport management internships with Avports at Republic Airport in Farmingdale, became president of the National Society of Leadership and Success (NSLS) and graduated from Vaughn magna cum laude.
Why an Alaska Air Traffic Control Assignment Didn’t Work Out
When he arrived in Fairbanks and started his training, Singleman began to question his choices. “I knew ahead of time that I didn’t have any support network up there, and the controllers I knew all said that was important,” he said. “But I thought I’d get my training and be able to move on. Once I got there, I found out that there wasn’t a path out any time soon. I didn’t know anyone, I felt very isolated and I missed my being close to my family. I realized that I wasn’t prepared or willing to make my life in Alaska.”
How Vaughn’s Career Services Team Reconnects with Alumni
Singleman decided to leave Fairbanks and return to New York. He immediately started networking and looking for a job, wanting to stay in aviation but unsure where and how. It was during this difficult time that career services reached out to him and learned about his situation. Daniels explained: “We do outcome surveys every year to see how our graduates are doing and to confirm our job placement numbers. And we don’t just send a form. We follow up with a phone call because we are relational, not transactional, with our students and graduates and that’s how we find out about students who have moved or want to move to another job, like Nick. We know it takes courage to leave a job, especially a desirable one. And we ask, ‘how can we help you, where do you want to go?'”
With the counseling of the career services team, including Mavis Hall and Erik Zupance, Singleman honed in on his job goal to stay in the aviation industry and use his management skills and updated his resume. “Career services helped me clean up my resume and put together a cover letter,” said Singleman, “and they are a great set of eyes on job opportunities in the industry.”
Landing an Airport Operations Coordinator Role Back Home in New York
Soon, a job came through from one of Vaughn’s employer partners and was sent along to Singleman, who had learned about the same opening from a family connection. As luck would have it, the job was with Avports at Republic Airport, where Singleman had had great internship experiences. Singleman was quickly hired to be operations coordinator and is thrilled with his new position and being close to his home and family. “I love working in the airport, and I’m glad I get to use what I learned in classes, including management classes. It’s great having diverse job responsibilities because that opens the door to different options down the road.”
KATHERINE’S STORY: HITTING A ROUGH PATCH AFTER A SMOOTH RIDE
Katherine Inamagua’s Rise from Student to Air Traffic Control Professional
Inamagua’s aviation career had always followed an upward trajectory. As a high school student, she had watched airplanes flying overhead near her home and decided she wanted to be a pilot. By the following fall, she was attending Vaughn College, where she excelled and was advised by a professor that she would be a good fit for air traffic control (ATC). “I researched air traffic and changed my degree to aeronautical sciences with a minor in air traffic control,” said Inamagua. “My professor, Professor Walcott, is still a mentor and put that curiosity in my mind, and I have loved air traffic control ever since.”
Inamagua made the most of her years at Vaughn, during which time she received her associate degree in aircraft operations in 2017 and her bachelor’s degree in aeronautical sciences in 2019 while working at LaGuardia Airport as a tower agent and being very active in various clubs on campus. “I was active in everything,” said Inamagua. “Women in Aviation International, Society of Hispanic Professional Engineers and as president of the student chapter of the Air Traffic Control Organization.” She was interning for the Port Authority during the initial construction phase of the brand-new LaGuardia Airport and was invited by President Sharon DeVivo to attend the groundbreaking. “It was super cool and exciting to be part of that at such a young age,” recalled Inamagua.
From Delta Air Lines to the FAA New York TRACON: Building an Aviation Career
A job opening published by career services helped Inamagua land her first job with Delta Air Lines at LaGuardia’s Airport Command Tower, a job she held for a year before going to work as a contractor for the FAA New York TRACON. As a remote pilot operator, her initial responsibilities included assisting in training ATCs. “After three years of training ATCs, we were selected by the FAA to travel the country and integrate Datacomm technology into our national air space (NAS), a great project to be part of,” she said, referring to the introduction of a new technology designed to enhance pilot communications across the contiguous United States.
A Setback at the FAA Air Traffic Control Trainee Program in Oklahoma City
Then, in 2024, she was selected by the FAA to go to the air traffic control trainee program in Oklahoma City. There, as Inamagua put it, “Things didn’t go quite as planned.” Inamagua made it to the end of the training program, only to be mathematically disqualified in her last test. “I realized I couldn’t continue and I had put all of my eggs in one basket. Now what do I do?”
Rebuilding Confidence with Help from Vaughn College Career Services
What she did, with some urging from a friend, was to reach out to DeVivo, who connected her with Daniels. “I told Chaundra everything about how bad I felt,” said Inamagua, “and she looked at my resume and said, ‘Are you kidding? You have a great resume!’ She helped me so much mentally, I don’t think she even realizes how much that conversation changed my life and helped me rebuild my confidence.”
Career services worked with Inamagua to revise her resume to reflect a new path and sharpen her search skills on LinkedIn. They worked with her on interview prep and an elevator pitch. Most important, they helped her believe in herself. “I have never forgotten what Chaundra said to me,” said Inamagua. “When you walk into that room, you have to believe you deserve to be there. I took that to heart, got out of my funk and focused on the job opportunity I really, really wanted. I had the interview on a Friday and was hired on Monday. And I absolutely love my job.”
A New Role as Air Traffic Strategy Specialist at United Airlines, Newark Airport
Inamagua is now an air traffic strategy specialist for United Airlines at Newark International Airport supporting an operation of 365 daily flights. Her responsibilities include managing aircraft operations in both movement and non-movement areas, ensuring efficient traffic control on active runways and coordinating with the FAA to establish taxiways and runway configurations. The intensity of this busy hub suits Inamagua just fine. “In the Northeast, we have a lot of weather, and I love the complexity and the pressure and the way you get to see the teamwork and decision-making, and how everyone works together to get the flights out.”
“There are a lot of people who have been in my situation and don’t know what to do and just leave aviation. For me, this is what I know and love. I’m so happy to have found an alternate path and still get to do what I love—talk to planes. And I get flight benefits! I never want to leave United. When I think about it, career services helped me get my first job, and now they helped me get what I want to be my last job.”
Paying It Forward: Staying Connected to Vaughn Alumni
Inamagua has stayed in touch with Daniels, keeping her posted on job openings and working to strengthen the partnership between United Airlines and Vaughn. She also spoke to students at a career services class to share her experiences with the next generation. “In the years since I graduated, there’s been COVID and shutdowns, but I want the students to know that there’s always going to be setbacks, and you have to push through and you can make it.
“I see their spark, and I hope to keep mine forever.”
“It takes courage to say this is not what I want. Especially when it’s a very desirable job.”
— Chaundra Daniels
