University of Georgia students are known to excel within the classroom, but a new program run by the UGA Career Center is helping faculty find new ways to support their students’ continuing excellence as they venture beyond the Arch.
The Career Everywhere Faculty Program helps faculty learn more ways to incorporate career education into the classroom and equips them with tools and resources to support the career development of all students through webinar trainings and outreach with Career Center staff.
On April 23, the Career Everywhere Faculty Celebration Breakfast recognized the first cohort of Career Ambassador faculty for their dedication to student success and career readiness. These faculty have successfully advanced to the Career Advocate level of the program and incorporated a larger-scale, unique implementation of career education into their classrooms.
There are three levels of the Career Everywhere Faculty Program: Career Advocate, Career Champion and Career Ambassador. As faculty complete virtual training and implement Career Center resources in the classroom, they advance through the levels of the program and earn a certificate of recognition.
“My biggest takeaway from the program has been an affirmation that I’ve been doing transformative work by preparing the first-year students I engage with within my course to have a strong foundation as they navigate their academic and career goals,” said Marques Dexter, the associate director of faculty and staff initiatives within the Office of Institutional Diversity.
The Career Everywhere Faculty Program is a reflection of the Career Center’s overall commitment to bringing career education to all areas of campus. By equipping faculty to lead conversations about transferring students’ academic skills to the workplace, the program empowers students to become better informed about career planning and professional success.
“As a faculty member, it is a joy to watch my students put what they have learned from class about career development into practice,” said Emma Laing, clinical professor and director of dietetics in the College of Family and Consumers Sciences’ nutritional sciences department. “Their confidence grows exponentially when they notice that they stand out when applying for highly competitive scholarships, jobs, and supervised practice programs.”
The next cohort of faculty to begin the Career Everywhere Faculty Program will be enrolled in fall 2024. Visit the website to learn more about enrolling in the program.