Career Programming
Graduate & Professional Student Appreciation Week (March 31-April 4, 2025)
The Office of Research and Graduate Programs in the College of Liberal Arts (CLA) celebrates Graduate Student Appreciation Week the first week of April 2025! Graduate and Professional Student Appreciation Week was started in 1993 by the National Association of Graduate-Professional Students as a way to support and appreciate graduate and professional students. CLA Graduate students are encouraged to celebrate their contribution to the College of Liberal Arts through a series of professional and career development opportunities hosted by CLA.
- Tuesday, April 1, 2025: In-Person Career Consultations: Schedule an appointment with Mackenzie Sullivan, Director of Graduate Student Career Services for help with exploring career options and fit, Effective job search strategies, LinkedIn profile creation and enhancement, resumes and cover letters, interview techniques, identifying and developing relationships with faculty, professional organizations, student groups, and employers. If this date doesn’t align with your schedule, schedule an appointment when it is convenient for you!
- Wednesday, April 2, 2025; 10am-12pm; Free professional headshots, coffee and snacks: Register to have professional headshots taken in Johnston Hall 202. CLA photographer, Johanna Heidorn will be setup to take your photo to be used for online portfolios, campus accounts and or even your commencement photo. Registration is highly encouraged, walk-ins are welcome.
- Friday, April 4, 2025, 11am-12pm, Zoom: Workshop: Creating Your 5-Year-Plan, facilitated by Maria Hofmann, Associate Director of Graduate Student Career & DEI Initiatives. This hands-on workshop gives an introduction to the purpose of 5-year plans (or any other individual development plan) and provides a practical guide on how to get started for CLA graduate students at any stage of their programs. Faculty and staff working with graduate students are welcome to attend. Register
Contact [email protected] with any questions.
Past Programming
Overview
Dates: May 20-22, 2025
Participation Stipend: $300.00
Location: Liberal Arts Engagement Hub, Pillsbury Hall, Minneapolis, MN
Eligibility:
Doctoral students in the humanities and humanistic arts or social sciences at the University of Minnesota.
International students are eligible to apply.
Applicants may be at any stage of their doctoral work, but they cannot have received the doctoral degree at the time of the workshop.
HWW especially encourages students from backgrounds historically underrepresented in higher education to apply.
Deadline for Students: February 14, 2025
Deadline for Endorsing Faculty Member: Feb 28, 2025
The Workshop
Humanities Without Walls (HWW) seeks applications from doctoral students pursuing degrees in the humanities and humanistic arts or social sciences for the HWW UMN Careers Beyond the Tenure Track Doctoral Workshop, to be held from May 20-22, 2025, in Minneapolis, MN. Selected students are expected to attend all workshop activities in person.
HWW is a three-day intensive, student-centered career exploration program of values discernment, career exploration, and practical preparation for jobs in a variety of sectors, both beyond and within the academy. Workshop sessions intentionally lay foundations for the fellows as they do the real-time work of discerning personal career values, building community within their cohort, making professional contacts, and researching potential career paths. Participants will learn how to leverage their skills and humanities training towards careers in the private sector, the nonprofit world, arts administration, public media and many other fields.
Participants are typically invested in the pressing issues of our time and are seeking ways to bring humanistic values, insights, and skills to their work lives, whether in the public, nonprofit, or private sector. Previous HWW Summer Workshop Fellows have come from a variety of humanistic disciplines, with experience in community building, museum curation, filmmaking, radio programming, social media, project management, research, writing, and teaching.
Students receive $300 for their participation.
Application Guidelines
Students must submit their applications on InfoReady by February 14, 2025.
The application consists of four parts:
Application Questionnaire
[Applicants from disciplines outside traditional humanities fields will be asked to explain how their research can be considered humanistic.]
Long-form Responses to the following questions: (250-300 words per question)
What are your career interests or your intended career trajectory? How have your background and experiences impacted your choices?
How will this workshop help you achieve your goals? What knowledge and skills are you hoping to learn?
Upload a Resume or CV (two pages maximum) that includes relevant professional experiences (including e.g., volunteering, part-time employment, etc.).
One letter of endorsement from a faculty or staff member (e.g. your Graduate Program Coordinator).
Contact
All questions should be directed to [email protected].
Applications closed.
This ORGP workshop supports PhD students who identify as first-generation in their career development beyond the tenure track. In six meetings over the course of the spring semester 2025, a small cohort of six students will work through exercises aimed at career exploration, preparation of application materials, networking, and the interview and negotiation process. Students will receive a small stipend ($200) for their participation. Contact Maria Hofmann with any questions. Apply by November 24, 2024.
CLA is excited to present its fifth annual Graduate Student Summer Internship Program. The Internship Program offers graduate students the opportunity to gain experience in a profession beyond the professoriate, explore how their academic training might translate into various career options, and build additional skills that will translate across sectors and jobs. The intention of this program is to provide funding for low-paid (or possibly unpaid) internships that students would otherwise not be able to accept. Students have the opportunity to do an internship of their choice, working with employers including social justice organizations, government agencies, nonprofits, for-profits, social ventures, or start-ups. See examples of previous internships.
This is a small cohort program that will enroll and fund up to 9-12 graduate students. It will kick off in November 2024 and run through the end of April 2025. Student applications are due by 11:59 p.m. Monday, September 30th, 2024.
Basics of the Academic Job Market
Friday, September 6, 2024, 11:30-1pm, Zoom
An introduction to the academic job market with an overview of typical timelines, application materials, and interviewing practices. Learn about the variety of institutions and academic positions, how to tailor your application to a specific job, and how to avoid common pitfalls. Open to all graduate students in CLA. Faculty and staff working with graduate students welcome.
The Academic Cover Letter
Friday, September 20, 2024, 11:30-1pm, Zoom
Learn about the purpose of the academic cover letter, its typical structure and content, how to tailor it to specific positions, and what mistakes to avoid. Open to all graduate students in CLA. Faculty and staff working with graduate students welcome.
Diversity Statement
Friday, October 4, 2024, 11:30-1pm, Zoom
An introduction to writing an effective diversity statement that speaks to your commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion in your research, teaching, and service in an authentic and convincing way. While this workshop focuses on the diversity statement within the academic job market, most content applies to applications to non-faculty positions as well. Open to all graduate students in CLA. Faculty and staff working with graduate students welcome.
This annual workshop series has been reenvisioned and condensed to better meet the needs of our graduate students. Sessions will be held during fall semester 2024 over Zoom. These sessions are hosted by CLA's Graduate Student Career Services Office, in conjunction with The Graduate School.
Careers Beyond Academia: Career Exploration and Research
Thursday, September 26, 2024, 11am-12pm, Zoom
During this session, Dr. Maria Hofmann, Associate Director, CLA Graduate Student Career Services, will focus on career exploration and research. This Canvas course includes resources you may wish to refer to before or after this workshop.
Careers Beyond Academia: Resumes and Cover Letters
Thursday, October 24, 2024, 11am-12pm, Zoom
During this session, Mackenzie Sullivan, Director, CLA Graduate Student Career Services, will focus on preparing resumes and cover letters for careers beyond academia. This Canvas course includes resources you may wish to refer to before or after this workshop.