Skip to main content
2025 CIGL Conference Main banner
Session Evaluation

Practice & Research Briefs

Access, Equity, and Inclusion

Research and Practice Briefs

Career Academy: Preparing Students for a Global World

Monday, October 20, 2025
1:45 PM - 3:00 PM CST
This session highlights a transformative program that took 20 traditionally underrepresented students to Europe for a unique career development experience. Students participated in site visits, met with alumni, and learned strategies for finding global employment. Through workshops, they gained valuable skills and insights to pursue careers abroad, while building a global network. The program empowered students to overcome barriers and expand their career opportunities on an international scale.

Learning Objectives:

  • Cultural and Contextual Awareness Upon completion, participants will gain a deeper understanding of how cultural, economic, and professional landscapes in Europe influence career paths and industry dynamics. They will reflect on the value of cross-cultural competence and how international experiences shape career development and decision-making.
  • Networking and Professional Development Upon completion, participants will learn effective strategies for fostering professional connections through engagement with alumni and industry professionals. They will explore best practices for networking, including how to collaborate across campus and initiate career-focused conversations that can lead to global opportunities.
  • Career Exploration and Personal Reflection Upon completion, participants will develop the ability to assess and analyze various career pathways and industries encountered during the program, linking those insights to their own students' goals. They will explore how to reflect on aligning skills and interests with the demands of international job markets on their ever-changing student demographics.
  • Global Competence and Collaborative Problem-Solving Upon completion, participants will enhance their global competence by exploring real-world professional challenges and collaborating in problem-solving scenarios during site visits. They will discuss how international experiences can help them develop students' adaptability and skills needed to thrive in diverse and evolving professional environments. They will also be able to understand health and safety concerns of such a program and how to manage that when developing their own program.