UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. – The Liberal Arts Career Enrichment Network is committed to helping Penn State students navigate career development and succeed in their job searches, especially in the midst of a global pandemic. Liberal Arts Career Week, a week-long series of workshops for Liberal Arts students, took place virtually Jan. 25-29 and proved to be a productive week of learning and networking.
Liberal Arts Career Week 2021 included 10 events, focusing on a range of topics from strategies to begin career development to guidance about graduate school and gap year decisions. Students had the opportunity to connect with employers including City Year, Community Service Group, Deloitte, Ferguson, GEICO, Kohl’s, Pennsylvania State Police, POLITICO, Target, and Teach For America.
A panel of liberal arts alumni mentors shared how members of Penn State’s extensive alumni network can help guide students in their career development. Liberal Arts students can apply year-round to be matched with an alumni mentor working in their field of interest through the Liberal Arts Alumni Mentor Program.
Alexa Broderick, the managing director of diversity, equity, and inclusivity for Teach For America, empowered students to incorporate diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) into their job searches by helping them develop language to facilitate DEI conversations.
Liberal Arts Career Week also highlighted how the Career Enrichment Network has adapted its services to help students navigate the new virtual landscape of job, internship, and graduate school applications during the COVID-19 pandemic. Recruiters from the Community Service Group, Ferguson, GEICO, Kohl’s, and Target provided advice on virtual recruiting and networking. Students then had the opportunity to virtually connect one-on-one with the recruiters during employer office hours.
Additional career development advice specific to the COVID-19 virtual environment is available on the Career Enrichment Network’s Get Hired website. Students who were unable to attend the Liberal Arts Career Week events can watch the event recordings on the College of the Liberal Arts’ YouTube channel.
The Career Enrichment Network will continue to host events and post job and internship opportunities throughout the spring semester, which are easily accessible to all Liberal Arts students through Nittany Lion Careers. Students are always welcome to share programming suggestions, including collaborations with Liberal Arts student clubs and organizations, with the Career Enrichment Network via email at lanetwork@psu.edu.