Bruce Bloom, '71, M.S.Ed. '73: Turning Early Career Lessons into Purposeful Service
By Lia Kizilbash Gillet

Bruce Bloom, '71, M.S.Ed. '73, shares his expertise in career readiness with NIU students. (Photo: Bruce Bloom)

When Bruce Bloom, 71, M.S.Ed. ’73, arrived at Northern Illinois University in the late 1960s, career resources were limited, and the structured support students rely on today didn’t exist.

Today, Bloom brings his lived experiences and expertise from a career in teaching and advising to support NIU students. 

After graduating from NIU, Bloom was unsure of how to build a meaningful career; he spent several years drifting from one retail job to another. It was after attending two career development sessions offered by his employer, Montgomery Ward, that a clear career path emerged and one that he is still passionate about today: career readiness.

“It completely shifted my understanding of available resources and the world of career services,” he said. “I was then motivated to pursue an opportunity to teach classes like this.”

“Career readiness and student support are very important to me because, unfortunately, I experienced none,” he continued. “Career-readiness skills are critical for seeking employment and effectively managing your career. Supporting students in learning these skills gives them a sense of comfort, knowing that someone has their back.”

In the early 1990s, Bloom reconnected with NIU and served on two advisory groups: the Career Alumni Advisory Council (1993-2001), which supported career-management programs for alumni, and the College of Education Advisory Council (1993-2009), which focused on marketing. In recent years, he reconnected again to volunteer at NIU's Career Fair Prep Workshop, reviewing resumes and discussing job-hunting strategies with students. 

“When I saw NIU was investing in career readiness, I knew I wanted to be part of it,” he said. “I was impressed by the focus and commitment of the students who attended the clinic.”

The Career Fair Prep Workshop, which has since been transformed into a dynamic, single-day Career Success Clinic volunteer opportunity, became the start of Bloom's ongoing commitment. Since then, he has participated in multiple NIU career support programs and enthusiastically joined fellow alumni in writing encouraging postcards and preparing care packages for students to read and open during finals week.
 
He believes alumni volunteers play a powerful role in student success.

“Volunteering is critical because it gives NIU an enormous resource of alumni with different backgrounds and experiences to tap into to assist students,” he said. “It establishes a strong, visible presence of alumni actively involved with the university.”

When asked what the most important advice is that he offers to students, he said, “Stay connected to the university, professors and other students. Become an active and involved alumnus, and develop your network through professional associations and friends.”

Bloom’s career spans roles in facilitating career management workshops at Moraine Valley Community College to advising engineering students at the Illinois Institute of Technology, where he also developed company partnerships to participate in career fairs. He served as adjunct faculty at both DeVry University and Robert Morris University — teaching three different career-management courses at Robert Morris, and at Devry teaching career development, principals of management, customer service, American history and contemporary world history.

Before these roles, and very early in his career, Bloom had an impactful experience at Xerox Corporation as a customer service representative. 

“This was the best classroom and on-the-job training I ever received in customer service,” he said. “Xerox's 12-week paid training class has served me well throughout my entire career.”

Bloom wrote about career development throughout his career. He began contributing career-management pieces to an internal Montgomery Ward newsletter, later writing a column for the former Chicagoland Job Source, Inc. and while taking coursework at Oakton Community College, contributed his “Bloom's Business” column to its Occurrence newspaper.

In 1993, Bloom started his own career consulting services business. He developed and facilitated workshops on career management topics, including resume writing, interviewing, networking, cover letter writing and salary negotiation.

For Bloom, this work is personal. Having once navigated early career confusion alone, he hopes to help ensure today’s students and early professionals don’t face the same uncertainty without support.

“I know what it feels like to be unprepared,” he said. “If I can help a student avoid that feeling — even in a small way — that’s worth everything.”

NIU alumni volunteer their time in meaningful ways. Want to brainstorm ways you can get involved? Contact Assistant Director of Volunteer Engagement Taylor Curry, M.P.A. '25, at tcurry4@niu.edu.