Westcliff’s Faculty of the Year Helps Students Get Hired Before Graduation

“Entry level, 5-plus years of experience required.” That single line has ended more first job searches than any tough interview question, and it leaves new graduates stuck needing a job to get experience and experience to get a job.

Professor Jesus Lucio spends his semesters helping Westcliff University students break that cycle before they ever leave campus. A 25-year tech industry veteran turned computer science and project management instructor, he fills his lectures with hard-won lessons from the field and treats every after-class question like the start of a career strategy session.

His students noticed. They helped make him Westcliff’s 2026 Faculty of the Year for the College of Technology and Engineering, an honor he traces straight back to the people in his classroom.

Lucio starts the conversation about life after graduation long before most students think to ask.

“I remind them that I was once in their shoes and I’m no different than they are,” Lucio said. “Showing up to class is only part of it. I want to know if they’re visiting the career center, working on their resume and thinking about where they want to be five years from now.”

He wants every student to reach the commencement stage with the kind of resume those postings demand.

Real Lessons From a Real Career

Lucio knows the fastest way to lose a room is to read off the slides. So he trades theory for real moments from the job, the tight deadlines and project pivots that taught him what no chapter could.

“Students really jump in when I connect the material to my own experiences. Reading straight from a textbook isn’t that engaging, so I add my own flavor and walk them through what actually happened in my career,” he said. “After 25 years in the industry, I have no shortage of stories that tie right back to what we’re learning.”

The bell rarely ends the lesson.

“Those stories keep students curious, and the questions keep coming during class and long after it ends,” Lucio said. “They email me all the time, and I make myself available whenever they want to talk, whether it’s about the course or just the field and where they want to go.”

That kind of access puts a seasoned tech pro in every student’s corner.

Rethinking the Job Hunt

One classroom conversation rewrote a student’s career path. She was sharp, driven and studying cybersecurity, but every job search ended the same way, with a first-round interview and then silence. She came to Lucio wondering what she was doing wrong, and his answer surprised her.

“Maybe you’re chasing the wrong companies because they want somebody with 10 years of cyber experience,” he said. “So I asked her what she could offer that someone else couldn’t. She was young, eager and hungry, and that gave her every reason to be someone’s best employee.”

She ran with the advice. A few months later, she had big news to share.

“She stopped me and said, ‘Professor, I have to tell you something. I got a job!’ Instead of going after companies that had been around for decades, she went after a startup,” Lucio said. “I told her that experience is on her resume now, and nobody can take it away. When she finishes school, she’ll have that under her belt wherever she goes next.”

One strategy shift turned a string of rejections into an offer, months before she even had her diploma in hand.

More Ways to Launch a Career

Lucio has heard the standard post-graduation advice more times than he can count, and he wants his students to know they have options.

“Everyone says to go get a job after you graduate, but that’s only one route. I show them they can work as a contractor or start their own business, and their reaction is usually, ‘We can do that?’ Absolutely,” Lucio said. “I’ve had students build a full app, sell it in the app store and bring on investors while I coached them along the way.”

He keeps tabs on those ventures well past the final grade, checking in on their progress when the same students land in his classes the next term.

And for students who take the traditional route, he wants them walking into interviews with some leverage of their own.

“Culture is important no matter where you go. When you’re interviewing, you’re interviewing them as well as they’re interviewing you,” he said. “You want to make sure you like the environment you’re going to be in and that it’s going to be a positive place for your future.”

Students leave his class knowing they have more say in their future than any job posting suggests.

A Hard-Earned Seat at the Front of the Room

Lucio knows exactly how it feels to stand outside a field you’re desperate to enter. Teaching was his dream after he earned his bachelor’s and master’s degrees, but higher education stayed out of reach until a connection through the Irvine Chamber of Commerce gave him a shot.

“I told him I’d love to teach, but I’d never had the chance to get in. It’s a really tough field to break into,” he said. “He was incredibly gracious. He said, ‘If you want to teach, I can help you get in,’ and he connected me with the right people. I went through the interview process from there, and that’s how it all started.”

Westcliff gave him a classroom both in person and online, and he never stopped learning himself. He’s now pursuing his doctorate on the same campus where he teaches.

Splitting time between the lectern and the student desk gives him an insider’s view, and the professors he swaps notes with at other schools see the same thing he does.

“Professors I know who’ve worked at other universities tell me Westcliff is by far the most advanced in technology and student resources, and I agree 110 percent,” Lucio said. “Students who come here from overseas feel so fortunate to have these resources at their fingertips, and I make sure to talk about that with every class.”

The professor who once couldn’t get his foot in the door now spends his days holding it open for others.

An Honor He Didn’t See Coming

Lucio never saw it coming – his students made sure he did.

“I was surprised and a little shocked, because there are so many great professors here. As a doctoral student, I learn from a lot of them myself,” he said. “What I appreciated most is that the award comes from the students. I work hard to make sure they have a great experience in my classes, so it felt like a reflection of that.”

If anything, the honor raised his own bar.

“Now I feel like I have to do even more. The students are happy, so what else can I do for them?” he said. “Winning awards isn’t my goal. My goal is making sure they’re learning and walking away with what they need for wherever they end up.”

Awards fade, but a student who walks into the field ready to work is the result Lucio chases every semester.

Off the Clock

Off campus, the coaching never really stops. He’s a husband and dad of two high schoolers, helping his oldest polish her college essays and cheering from the stands at his youngest’s varsity water polo matches. Family time, at home or on the road, sits at the top of his list.

When he needs to recharge, you’ll find him in the garage with the hood up.

“I’m a total car fanatic. Most people don’t know that, but I get pretty greasy in my spare time,” he said. “Whenever I get the chance, I love tearing down an engine and working on a car. It’s my way to detox and relieve stress.”

His favorite way to unwind is figuring out how something works by taking it apart, which explains a lot about how he teaches.

The Support Behind the Classroom

Lucio says the people behind the scenes at Westcliff make his job easier, and that support flows straight to his students.

“Whenever I need support, the people here respond quickly. If a student has an issue or a concern, it gets addressed right away, and that’s beyond fantastic,” he said. “I tell students not to hesitate. Go to your student advisor or come to me, and we’ll help however we can. Nobody ever drops the ball.”

That support is a big part of why he still loves the job after 25 years in the field.

“Westcliff has been so kind to me that I never want to let anyone here down,” Lucio said. “I feel welcome and appreciated every time I walk in. I’ve worked at a lot of places, and that kind of culture is rare. I enjoy the students, I enjoy everyone here, and I’m grateful to be part of it.”

That’s the energy he brings to every student staring down an entry-level posting that asks for the impossible.