Description:

Distinct from general education programs that either offer a menu of area requirements or, at the other extreme, rely on an open curriculum, Connecticut College’s Connections program guides students through a four-year developmental process of enhanced integrative thinking and interdisciplinary problem-solving. Within Connections, students learn to craft a personalized research inquiry that draws on courses across the curriculum, off-campus engagement in study away and/or internships, and culminates in a capstone presentation at an All College Symposium in their senior year. Woven into Connections, the Hale Center for Career Development created a four-year developmental model for career exploration--the the Career Action Program (CAP). Right from the start, students work with a career adviser in their first year seminars and explore the linkages between their developing academic interests and relevant career pursuits. They also take a for-credit, seven-week career preparation course that teaches students the basics of career exploration, networking, storytelling, and professionalism. They then proceed to Advanced Career Engagement (ACE) opportunities with alumni, employers, and community partners. As they complete each aspect of CAP, they unlock flexible funding options to support job shadowing, internships, and skill development. CAP contrasts with more traditional funded internship programs that only release funds after the junior year. In this way, it allows students to build increasingly sophisticated career skills through accumulated knowledge and experience in conjunction with their academic development. At each juncture of CAP, students are expected to reflect on their career learning and its relationship to their academic study. Connecticut College created a general education program called Connections that demonstrates academic distinction with a model that builds over a 4-year developmental approach to honing complex problem solving skills and integrative educational abilities. Based on a foundational model of interdisciplinary thinking and application in the real world, the Connections Curriculum empowers students to create their own academic journey and independent projects based on their interests. These individualized projects lead to a community engagement, internship and/or study-away experience where students explore their interdisciplinary problem culminating in a presentation to the College community during an All College Symposium. Career education is Integrated into the Connections curriculum. The College historically led the industry in providing students with funding to make internship opportunities accessible to students the summer before their senior year through a structured, one-size-fits-all program. Fully aligned with the Connections curriculum - and recognizing that students are more savvy and benefit from options to access experiences earlier in their college career - the Hale Center created a 4-year developmental model, the Career Action Program (CAP). The CAP teaches students the basics of networking, storytelling, and professionalism to give them the tools to boost their career development beginning in their first year. In the next level of engagement, students conduct Advanced Career Engagements (ACEs) with alumni, employers and the community to further explore career ideas. Lastly, the revamped Career Action Program provides flexible funding options - incremental or lump-sum - for students to pursue career preparation in ways that meet their individual needs.

Audience:

Career Services

Level:

Intermediate

Track:

Coaching & Advising

Type:

Traditional

Main Speaker:

Persephone Hall, Connecticut College

Additional Speakers:

Jefferson Singer, Connecticut College