The curriculum consists of 37 ready-to-go lessons that can be used in any classroom from Music Theory to English Composition to Psych 104. Lessons are arranged into three levels—introductory, intermediate and capstone—and cover everything from writing a personal mission statement to networking, resume-building and updating a LinkedIn profile site.
Alison Holmes, assistant professor of politics and International Studies program leader, participated in the curriculum development. She’ll be having students conduct mock interviews in her capstone class on March 8 and 10.
“Helping students think about their career plans after they graduate as part of their ‘HSU story’ while they are still in college is an important part of what our career curriculum tries to do,” Holmes says.
One of the goals is to help students understand and explain the connections between what they’ve gained from the classroom and the skills they’ll need for professional success, says Loren Collins, faculty support coordinator for service learning and career education.
“Degrees in the arts, humanities and social sciences are incredibly valuable,” Collins says. “But there’s a misperception in the market. Students don’t always articulate the skills and values they’ve learned in ways that employers understand.”
Integrating career lessons can change that. Incorporating skills needed beyond the university helps students meld what they’re already learning about being an engaged, clear-thinking global citizen with explorations of the market value of their degree.
As a bonus, students are more focused in the classroom because they see how what they’re learning fits into their life goals, Holmes says. And this new awareness of what they’ve achieved at HSU gives them an edge when they climb the platform to collect their degrees in May.
“They arrive at graduation with a narrative that supports their aspirations and ambitions and a real sense of confidence about what they have to offer—and how to present that to the world,” Holmes says. “HSU is rightly proud of our graduation pledge—but it becomes hollow if it’s just a ribbon they put on to cross the stage.”
For more information, visit http://www2.humboldt.edu/acac/curriculum.
Contact info:
Alison Holmes 826-4117, Alison.holmes@humboldt.edu
Loren Collins 826- 5459, loren.collins@humboldt.edu
Deidre Pike, journalism assistant professor, (707) 362-7198, deidre.pike@humboldt.edu