Career Applications of Language Teaching and Academic Work

Workshop Description

Graduate students and instructors in language and literature programs develop a wide-ranging and highly transferable skill set through language teaching, research, curriculum design, and the day-to-day work of creating and sustaining learning environments. These skills are essential across many roles and sectors, but there are few structured opportunities to learn how to translate experiences rooted in language departments into broader career pathways.

This interactive workshop focuses on helping participants identify, articulate, and position the skills developed through language teaching and academic work for a range of professional contexts. Using guided reflection, skills-mapping exercises, and career pathway examples drawn from language-focused trajectories, participants examine how their experiences in language departments connect to industries and roles beyond the academy. The session emphasizes practical methods and real-world application, prioritizing clarity and actionable next steps over abstract career advice.

By the end of the workshop, participants will be able to:

• Identify transferable skills developed through language teaching, research, and academic work
• Articulate the value of language-based teaching and scholarly experiences for employers and professional audiences beyond the academy
• Apply insights from diverse career trajectories of language-trained professionals to their own career exploration
• Evaluate potential industries and roles based on skills, interests, and priorities
• Define concrete next steps for continued career exploration

Facilitated Brownbag Lunch Description

Bring your lunch and join us for a facilitated discussion on the following topics: exploring career directions, job search strategy and positioning, translating academic experience, and stability and decision-making in uncertain times. 

The events will be facilitated by Ashley Voeks, a career-readiness consultant who works with current and former students of languages to help them identify and leverage their skills on the job market and explore meaningful career pathways. She has over five years of experience designing and facilitating career-readiness workshops for language students and faculty.

She brings a strong background in language education, having taught French language and literature at the University of Texas, Texas Tech University, and Oakland University, and she currently teaches French with the Alliance Française de Détroit. In addition to her consulting and teaching, she works in government technology, supporting public-sector organizations in improving digital services.

Register for the career event by March 25, 2026. Workshop: 9:00 am – 12:00 pm. Facilitated lunch: 12:00 – 1:30 pm. Participants may choose to attend the workshop, the lunch or both.