Professional Pathway - Center for Career and Professional Development

Career and Network Navigation Courses

The Professional Pathway is a series of courses dedicated towards helping students build their professional network and gain professional experience starting in their first semester. Whether a student is already on a specific career path or they haven’t even begun to consider career options, the Professional Pathway courses are designed with flexible and immersive assignments that meet students anywhere in the career development process.

During the first year students complete Career and Network Navigation courses each semester. These courses focus on navigating the systems of employment in the United States and include multiple touch points with employers and alumni throughout the experience.

“Through this class [CORE104] I discovered that I am able to think on my feet relatively quickly and efficiently to cohesively respond to questions. The amount of practice that this class had with interviews definitely helped me develop this skill. This class has also taught me that one of the best ways to find out more about a job or major or position is by asking someone in your prospected position to find out more about what the position actually looks like.” -Brittany Thayer ’22, Economics major, Business Management minor
“Honestly, I would have not thought much of what I do after college if I did not take this class. The first semester I did the bare minimum in the class and felt like I did not get much out of it. The second semester I thought I put much more effort in and feel like I will get a much better grade in the class, along with all of my other classes.” -Spencer Ralston ’22- undeclared
“I believed that I was not doing a good job of advertising myself. This class helped greatly in this regard. While I was no stranger to interviews, the class did a great job refining my technique. More importantly, the class was extremely useful in relation to my resume, as well as presenting myself in the best manner. My original resume was a disaster, but the class gave me the proper tools to reorganise it. I do truly believe that this class may greatly influence my life’s career path.” -Frank Minges ’22, Biology major, Environmental Science minor
“My personal experience in this class has been overall, very helpful. Most of the class periods I’ve been in were incredibly informative, especially for the interview process. Coming into this class, I had no idea what to say or do during the interview process. After learning about keywords, body language, and the STAR method, I was able to learn exactly what I should be doing in an interview setting. I’m much more confident in general about the whole thing and shouldn’t have to worry nearly as much about going in for a job interview in the future.” -Aiden Briancon ’22, History major, French minor
“Throughout this course, I have built on numerous skills and gained insight on skills that I have that I was previously not aware of. Coming into this course, I had an idea that I wanted to become a teacher but I was not aware of some of my top skills. I learned in the skills finder that my top skill is harmony which will be great in the field of teaching. I also have become more aware of my responsibility and work ethic throughout the course of taking this class…The most impactful part of this course was the mock interviews. The interviews allowed me to polish my skills in an interview and made me feel more confident. Before entering the course, I was nervous in an interview scenario and did not feel completely prepared. However, now I am extremely prepared and feel as if I am ready to have a successful interview in the future.” -Devin Garner ’21, English major, Education Studies minor
“The most impactful part of this course was the mock interviews. The interviews allowed me to polish my skills in an interview and made me feel more confident. Before entering the course, I was nervous in an interview scenario and did not feel completely prepared. However, now I am extremely prepared and feel as if I am ready to have a successful interview in the future.” -Emma McNesby ’22, Math and Chemistry double major, French minor
“Largely, this class (CORE104) and the previous one (CORE103) helped me to employ confidence in applying and interviewing for jobs which have overall encouraged me to try for jobs and internships that I see.” -Katie Riesner ’22, Chemistry major, Biology minor

The Honors College Externship

Exclusive to St. Mary’s College, the Honors College Externship serves as a recruitment pipeline for internships with employer partners. This work-based learning course combines hands on experience in the form of structured training and employer developed projects, collectively known as “placement”. Placement is paired in seminar style class led by a St. Mary’s College instructor with industry expertise.

Students are encouraged to select an externship course based on their professional goals. Externships are offered throughout the academic year and summer session. New placement sites are in constant development to meet the needs of the student body.

Current industries include behavioral therapy, emergency medical services, environmental justice, sport management, integrated marketing, sustainable agriculture, non-profit and museum management, professional writing, public health, and arts education.