Claire van Kempen ’26 won’t have to wait too long before she launches her career in the finance sector when she graduates from Colgate in May.
That’s because the economics and political science double major from Denver was offered a job as an associate broker for the insurance firm Amwins soon after she completed an internship there last summer — and accepted.
Thus, next summer, van Kempen will return to the company’s New York City office, where she made an impression as an intern thanks to her work ethic and Colgate education.
Van Kempen said she’s grateful for the opportunity to join the firm.
“The job market being so tough right now is part of the reason why I really focused on trying to build relationships with my boss and my team and making it vocal why I would want to work there because then they’d be more incentivized to give me an offer,” she said.
As an intern, she was assigned to a team of brokers, and was tasked with shadowing employees and processing insurance quotes. She was given jobs that were designed to teach her the ins and outs of the insurance industry, such as processing insurance quotes and finalizing policies.
“The work was really helpful because the team I was working on was focused on helping me learn rather than having me do work that kept me busy,” she said.
Another reason she stood out was her work as a Colgate student-athlete.
Van Kempen, a goalkeeper on the field hockey team, committed to Colgate because she wanted to study at a small university with rigorous academic programs.
She was drawn to business, following in the footsteps of her parents, who both work in the business sector, and her sister, who’s an investment banker in New York City.
She selected economics as a major, which is a typical path for Colgate students who are interested in business. While she loaded up on economics courses, she signed up for classes in other topics as well.
One of those classes was a political science course called Fundamentals of International Relations (POSC 232). The subject intrigued her enough to add political science as a second major.
Another course that opened her eyes was The Economics of Poverty in the United States (ECON 230), which teaches students about issues that involve poverty, especially in Central New York. Students are required to complete at least 10 hours of field work at a local non-profit organization.
Van Kempen was assigned to a non-profit in nearby Sherburne, N.Y., which offers assistance to people on welfare.
“That is definitely one of the most beneficial courses I’ve taken at Colgate,” she said. “It opens your eyes about the opportunities at Colgate and the interworking of the U.S. welfare system.”
As a senior, she’s taking courses from various topics including Seminar: Conspiracy Theories and Fake News (POSC 419), which is part of the political science program. The course teaches students how those beliefs originate and who’s susceptible to believing in them.
Van Kempen said she has enjoyed studying at Colgate. She said she often discusses her courses with her sister, who earned her business degree from the University of Michigan.
“I like having a well-rounded education,” she said. “It’s interesting comparing my sister’s education to mine. She knows so much about business and is so smart. But then, I’ll text her about my classes, and she thinks it’s really interesting that I’m taking classes on conspiracy theories or geology. I like having base-level knowledge in random things.”
Her family has also been an important tool throughout her college journey.
“My sister is very helpful in being able to teach me what to do and how to prepare myself to start a career post-college,” she said. “Both of my parents have been helpful with teaching me how to network myself and present myself in a way that comes across well to adults and executives.”
