UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — Students majoring in programs offered by the Penn State College of the Liberal Arts had the chance to explore career opportunities and learn strategies for making themselves more attractive candidates to potential employers during the college’s recent Liberal Arts Career Week. This year’s annual event, which took place Jan. 16-20, featured a variety of seminars, workshops, and information sessions for liberal arts students seeking employment, internship and study abroad opportunities.
According to Katie Wysocki, assistant director of the college’s Career Enrichment Network, one of the goals for Liberal Arts Career Week was to present students a diverse menu of events from which to choose. “From workshops, to panels focused on nonprofits, government and the corporate world, to our ending event with alumni — I think all of these things add a unique educational component to the students’ professional development.”
The week-long event also highlighted the importance that prospective employers place on finding employees with communication, problem solving, and other core liberal-arts skills. Companies and organizations such as City Year, Liberty Mutual Insurance, and the Pennsylvania State Police, for example, indicated that they actively recruit students with liberal arts backgrounds because they possess these fundamental skills and because of their ability to quickly adapt to their new positions.
Two current students who will begin consulting jobs with IBM after graduating this spring echoed those sentiments during the “Marketing Your Liberal Arts Degree” workshop. Caroline Briselli (senior, history) and Jordan Klavans (senior, economics and political science) both shared how their liberal arts backgrounds opened up a world of job possibilities that they may not have previously considered. Briselli, in particular, encouraged her classmates to “keep an open mind” and pursue their interests, even if it means not following a specific plan.
“Coming into Penn State, I was convinced that I wanted to be a museum curator,” she shared. “Now, four years later, I'm preparing for a career in the public sector consulting with a technology company. If I had only taken advantage of opportunities which related to museums — the plan which I [initially] had in my head — I wouldn’t have discovered my love of communications, my passion for the public sector, or my interest in Middle Eastern history.
“As liberal arts students, one of our greatest advantages is that we have the freedom to explore our passions,” she continued. “I would encourage students to use this freedom, as well as the support and opportunities which we have as Penn Staters, to create a unique and fulfilling undergraduate experience.”