Alumni have completed advanced degrees at institutions that include CalArts, Claremont Graduate School, NYU, the Pratt Institute, School of the Art Institute of Chicago, The University of Iowa, University of Wisconsin, and the University of Southern California.
Graduates who enter the professional arena have enjoyed careers in galleries and museums, in fine arts, design, business, architecture, education, publishing, industry, and travel.
Daniel Sandoval designs with confidence and creativity thanks to his strong education at Whittier College. “I love being able to see the skills that I learned at Whittier in real life application,” said Daniel, who’s now senior graphic designer at Brio Water Technology, an industry-leading supplier of water coolers, filtration systems, and other products. “Being able to see the things that I create being pushed into the world, such as Instagram and online, has really been inspiring.” Since working for Brio, he’s grown more than he could have imagined. He loves the creative freedom the company gives him. He also enjoys working with his experienced team—a real-world version of his days collaborating with his diverse peers in Whittier’s art program. One of his favorite aspects of his Digital Art and Design major was “being able to collaborate with different people, and understand different perspectives, while all working together for one collective goal of producing work that we are proud of,” he said. As he works with his colleagues to craft Brio’s visual storytelling—through social media, its website, and more—he’s able to approach each project with confidence thanks to his Whittier College experience. “Whittier really allowed me to step into this role with my feet firmly planted,” Daniel said. His art courses gave him a strong intellectual foundation and the technical skills to design with confidence. In particular, his Graphic Design 3 class pushed him in many ways, ingraining in him the process of design, its power, and what he could offer the world. Beyond that, opportunities to take classes in a wide variety of subjects allowed Daniel to grow into a well-rounded thinker, able to pull knowledge from different fields to solve creative problems. “I can't thank Whittier College enough for helping to play such a pivotal role in preparing me for life after school,” he said.
Simone could draw before she could walk. It’s in her blood, and at Whittier, she found professors who valued her and her talent. She was treated as a unique individual and “never felt compared to other students,” she said.
After graduating, Simone began working at the San Diego Museum of Art, then started her own shop—Little Dame Shop—and an art business, Pixley Temperance.
“I am a more confident and well-rounded person because of the solid education I got at Whittier College,” she said.
Kyrah has always loved art history, and later loved her time at Whittier College, where she learned the history behind the artwork she handles every day at Michaan’s Auctions. The leading auction house is one of the largest in Northern California.
After graduating, Kyrah moved to London to learn about everything from paintings to silver at Christie’s Education. Having earned a Master’s degree there, she moved back to California and now manages the day-to-day happening of Michaan’s fine arts department.
“My time at Whittier gave me my foundation and since then I have tried to add to it daily,” she said.
A chemistry major who minored in studio art, Carolyn explored the occasional overlap between the two. She now studies at The Boucher Institute of Naturopathic Medicine in Canada, which requires a hybrid of logical and creative thinking to offer the most natural solutions possible for multifaceted disease presentations. Her interdisciplinary education has trained her well to think logically and creatively about how to solve problems and make important observations.
"Studying art forces you to think abstractly and creatively to come up with a unique perspective and style," she said. "I like to think I have been able to maintain this approach in deciding what kind of style I want for my life and the perspective I will take for conducting my professional life."
