Experiential Learning
In CLA, learning doesn’t stop at the classroom — not with the Twin Cities on our doorstep!
Our location in Minneapolis-St. Paul gives you access to the headquarters of global companies, world-class art venues, state government offices, and nonprofits large and small. Here are some of the ways you can take advantage of opportunities in town and beyond.
Internships
Want to test out potential career choices? Build your network? Get real-life work experience? Further develop particular skills and competencies? Internships are a great way to do that! And here at CLA, everyone from your professors and academic advisors to your career counselor will help you to find internship experiences that match your wants and needs.
Recent CLA Internships
- Google (Menlo Park, CA); U.S. Senate (Washington, D.C.); Mayo Clinic (Rochester, MN); Westminster Archives Centre (London); First Avenue (Minneapolis); Banco de Desarrollo del Ecuador (Quito); 3M (St. Paul); China Pacific Insurance Company (Shanghai); Minnesota Vikings (Eagan, MN); Guggenheim Museum (New York, N.Y.)
Research
Undergraduate research gives you a perfect opportunity to examine a subject of interest in greater depth. It's also a great way to further develop your research and writing talents, which will be necessary whether you attend graduate or professional school or you enter the workforce upon graduation.
Did you know? Our Dean's First-Year Research & Creative Scholars Program pairs first-year CLA students with a CLA professor to work on research together. The program offers you a unique chance to try your hand at research, and from your first semester on campus!
Service-Learning and Volunteering
Want to get involved at the community level, to serve your community and grow while doing so? We got you! Through the University's Center for Community-Engaged Learning and through CLA faculty and departments, we offer many programs to help you find volunteering opportunities, community-engaged classes, and other experiential opportunities.
Check out our Center for Community-Engaged Learning on Instagram!
Learning Abroad
With more than 200 programs in over 60 countries, it's no surprise that the University of Minnesota is regularly ranked in the Top 20 for the U.S. News and World Report's Best Study Abroad category. With so many choices, we can pretty much guarantee that we'll find the right program for you. What's more, our CLA professors regularly teach courses and many first-year seminars abroad, so you'll have lots of opportunities to continue taking CLA courses with CLA faculty even when you're away from campus.
Student Employment
With so many CLA and University departments, programs, and other offices, you'll have lots of opportunities to find a campus job. Landscaping? Athletics? Career Services? There's a gig for you, out there! And don't forget — a campus job is more than a way to make money. You also learn work and leadership skills on the job. And everyone at the "U" is focused on making sure you get a lot out of your experience.