George Ampratwum
Executive Director
George Ampratwum serves as Executive Director of the Career Center at the University of Pittsburgh, where he leads strategy, employer partnerships, and career development initiatives for one of Pitt’s most student-facing units. He brings to this role a genuinely global perspective, having built and scaled career and professional development programs across four continents.
Prior to Pitt, Mr. Ampratwum served as Director of Partnerships and Career Development at the Ashinaga Foundation in Japan, where he led the design and evaluation of professional development initiatives across seven regional offices spanning Japan, the United Kingdom, France, Brazil, the United States, Senegal, and Uganda. He also directed research and learning needs analysis to shape programming for employees and scholars across the Foundation’s global network.
Before Ashinaga, he held roles at the African Leadership University (ALU) in Rwanda and Mauritius, where he scaled career development and corporate partnerships across both campuses to strengthen graduate employment outcomes.
George holds a BA in Psychology and Sociology, an M.Phil. in Social Psychology from the University of Ghana, an Executive MBA from ALU School of Business, and is currently pursuing an EdD in Education Policy and Social Change at the University of Pittsburgh. In his free time, he enjoys hiking, traveling, and working out.
Ryan Sweeny
Associate Director
Ryan began his career at Pitt in 2004 in career services; prior to working at Pitt, he was a mental health counselor and a high school teacher and coach. In addition to his duties as Associate Director for Career Consulting, Ryan enjoys working with undecided students.
Ryan holds a B.A. in Psychology and a Ph.D. in Counseling Psychology from the University of Notre Dame, and makes amazing queso!!
Sharon Mickens
Associate Director, Employer Relations
Sharon Mickens joined the Career Center in June 2013. She serves as the Associate Director of Employer Relations. Sharon obtained her B.S. degree in Business Administration from the School of Business and Industry at Florida A&M University. Her experiences in leadership, management, training, and recruiting in the pharmaceutical and financial services industries lend support in attracting the region’s and the nation’s top employers to recruit from the world-class University of Pittsburgh.
Alyson Kavalukas
Assistant Director
Alyson joined the Career Center staff in 2012 and has been with the University since 2004. She has lived in Pittsburgh, Miami, Tampa, New York City and Lyon, France, with professional experience in a variety of industries. Alyson has two degrees from the University of Pittsburgh, a Bachelor of Arts in French and a Masters of Public Policy and Administration from the Graduate School of Public and International Affairs. Hail to Pitt!
Specialties and Interests
Special Events, Marketing, DataMarie Newkirk
Assistant Director for Experiential Learning
Marie recently repatriated to the United States after 16 years of living and working in the Middle East. With 12 years of experience working in higher education in career development, she enjoys challenging, empowering, and training individuals for career exploration and growth. She is certified in the Myers Briggs Type Indicator and the Strong Interest Inventory and holds a certification as a Career Development Facilitator from the National Career Development Association, where she is also a member.
Before joining the University of Pittsburgh, she worked as the Career Services Manager for Northwestern University’s Qatar campus. She is experienced in career coaching, mentoring, professional development, administration, operational leadership, and experiential learning.
Marie holds a B.A. in Social Science and an M.S. in Education. She enjoys traveling, has been to over 20 countries, and likes gardening.
Kaitlin Anne Miller
Administrative Assistant to the Executive Director
Kaitlin joined the Career Center in September 2024. Prior to that, she worked as an Assistant Kindergarten Teacher where she helped students work toward who they wanted to become. She is now excited to be a part of a team that continues this work. Kaitlin graduated from Pitt in 2016 with a double major in fiction writing and communication, a studio arts minor, and a digital media certificate.
Alice Harrison
Alice has been an employee at the University of Pittsburgh since 1990. In 2007, she joined the Career Center and currently is the Student Services Assistant/Receptionist.
Mary Ramsey
Program Coordinator of Student Success Initiatives
Dr. Mary Ramsey serves as the Program Coordinator of Student Success Initiatives at the University of Pittsburgh, serving at-promise students at Pitt, with a focus on supporting first-generation college students. A proud first-generation college student herself, Mary works with the Provost Academy and PALs program, and serves as the lead of the Career Prep Academy. She is a Certified Career Service Provider through NCDA. Mary obtained her Doctorate of Education from Fairleigh Dickinson University, where her research focused on the benefits of serving as a peer coach for underrepresented STEM students. She obtained her Master’s degree in zoology from Miami University in Oxford, Ohio, where she focused on conservation education in urban areas.
Prior to her current role, Mary served as the Peer Coach Coordinator for an LSAMP alliance and the lead of a STEM Academic Success Center. Mary has worked as an adjunct professor at Anne Arundel Community College, Clark State Community College, and Central State University where she taught biology, zoology, and college algebra.
Mary lives with her daughter, and dogs in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. She enjoys baking and tending to her houseplants.
