Academic and Career Development helps University College students make a smooth transition to IUPUI and start their journey to graduation through helping students explore their interests, choose a major, and aid with personal goals.
Each month, Academic and Career Development provides students the chance to learn about careers, explore different majors, and experience a variety of workplace environments through its Field Trip Fridays initiative.
Earlier this semester, students had the chance to attend a variety of trips, including visits to the Indiana Statehouse, Prosthetic Solutions of Indiana, and Indiana Donor Network. On October 25, a group of students took a trip to the Epidemiology Resource Center, where they heard from the organization’s employees and learned more about careers in the health care industry.
Simrandeep Kaur, an epidemiology major, participated in the Epidemiology Resource Center field trip and found her dream job in the process. “I feel like if I didn't go, I wouldn't know that this job even existed,” Kaur said.
Discovering her dream job has given Kaur a sense of purpose for her education. “I feel like it's giving me motivation. When I’m feeling down or I'm feeling, ‘Oh, what is the purpose of what I'm doing?,’ I feel I essentially have that go-to purpose and motivation.”
Kaur has also been able to connect what she learned on the field trip to her courses. “I recently have been able to connect all my classes in some way or another,” Kaur said. “Everything starts to make sense now.”
Field Trip Fridays began in 2018 as an initiative targeted to students pursing majors in health and life sciences as a way to further career development; since then, the initiative has expanded to include new majors and focus on other careers.
Kerry Lay, a career consultant for Academic and Career Development, has found that these outings allow students to learn about new career pathways, hear from professionals, and experience the environment of each featured company or academic program.
A lot of times in the exploration process, [students] only know the things that they have been exposed to. They might not know about their dream job.
Kerry Lay, career consultant for Academic and Career Development
Academic programs also have the chance to showcase their majors and career opportunities through the field trips. “We are happy to partner with programs on campus, and that's usually a little bit easier for students because it's already here, they don't have to go too far, and it's a very transferable experience for them,” Lay said.
Lay also expressed how important it is that faculty get involved in the field trips. “Whenever faculty tell students about something, that is weighted a lot heavier to students than if we just send an email,” she said. “We’d love to partner with faculty if they have an idea for a field trip that they'd like to take their students on.”
Field Trip Fridays will continue into the spring semester with a variety of new exciting opportunities for students.
Academic and Career Development helps University College students make a smooth transition to IUPUI and start their journey to graduation through helping students explore their interests, choose a major, and help with personal goals.
For more information, contact the Division of Undergraduate Education Office of Communications at duecomm@iu.edu.
