Setting Scotties Up for Success

Agnes Scott redefines career exploration with thoughtful, professional success opportunities for students.

By Karina Antenucci

Naturally, when considering the definition of professional success, many people might think of climbing the ranks of an organization and an increasing salary. While these certainly may be parts of a career journey, Dawn Killenberg, executive director of Agnes Scott College’s Office of Internship and Career Development, says the college sets different priorities in helping students identify their professional success goals in SUMMIT and beyond.

“When we talk about professional success at Agnes Scott, it’s not really about a destination and checking a box,” explains Killenberg. “It’s about a lifetime of growth and creating a life that works for you. We want to help students learn the process of discovering ‘who am I, what are my skills and strengths, what opportunities align with my interests, and how can I connect with the world of work?’”

In 2015, the college’s senior leadership decided to move career development from the Division of Student Affairs to the Division of Academic Affairs in order to more closely connect what students learn in the classroom with the world of the workplace.

“There’s a lot of data that shows students are more satisfied with their academic experience if they see its relevance,” Killenberg notes.

A Committee for Professional Success was established and convened in the fall of 2019. The group of 15 members from departments across the college conducted interviews with multiple stakeholders, including faculty, students and alums, and reviewed data sources, such as the World Economic Forum, to determine ways for deepening the successful SUMMIT initiative with innovative professional success experiences for Agnes Scott’s undergraduate and graduate students. These experiences ranged from exploration of interests to landing great jobs.

The committee’s work resulted in new requirements that will be phased in this year and the following one. In the implementation plan, these include undergraduate labs for first-years focused on academic connections and career exploration as well as a requirement for every major and graduate program to include an internship or research project. Additionally, digital skills aligned with each student’s course of study will be included in the curriculum, and each discipline identifies at least two courses that are project-based with hands-on learning.

“We are enthusiastic about these areas and know they will help our students be more successful after graduation,” says Professor of Psychology Jennifer Hughes, who co-chaired the implementation plan for professional success. “[To measure the effectiveness of these new requirements], future departmental assessment plans will include an assessment of these professional success components.”

Also in the works is a new center designed to inspire student discovery and career education with career coaches, real-world career exploration with alums and college partners, and impactful connections to internships and job recruiters.

“To have a center that promotes curiosity, discovery and exploration is the pinnacle of what we’re trying to do,” Killenberg says. “We’re fighting a societal pressure where students are asked at such a young age, ‘What do you want to be when you grow up?’ We think the more they explore, the more they will land on something they love.”

In 2020, the Office of Internship and Career Development was also able to hire career peers and career community coaches who will have dedicated, welcoming spaces within the center, an endeavor that was made possible with funding from the Goizueta Foundation.

Career peers are juniors and seniors who receive training to help students with professional communication, including interviewing, writing resumes and cover letters, using LinkedIN and more. The career peers work closely in guiding other students—a method that Killenberg says is known to reduce the anxiety students may have about visiting a career center.

Additionally, a Career Communities initiative offers undergraduate and graduate students the opportunity to drop in or schedule appointments with career coaches who are well versed in and connected to employers within their professional niches. The coaches, who educate Scotties on everything from on-the-job jargon to interviewing skills, are focused on one of four professional community categories: health, sustainability and science; nonprofit, service corps and arts; technology, business, media and communications; and government, pre-law, education and international affairs.

Career coach Irene Foran, a certified career services provider, serves as a specialist within the latter community.

“Career coaching prepares students to create plans and to follow through with those plans on an ongoing basis, navigating and creating success not only for the first job but also for a lifetime of success,” Foran says.

It also helps students debunk career myths, assess values, discover strengths and broaden their horizons, says Catherine Johansson, senior career coach, who is also a certified career services provider and focuses on the nonprofit, service corps and arts community.

“In one activity in our SUMMIT 120 Career Exploration course that is required in the second semester of a student’s first year, we ask students to name as many full-time jobs as they can in two minutes,” she says. “Because many students have only been exposed to jobs in their families or from the media, they struggle to list even 10 possible careers.”

As for students who are undecided about their professional paths, Foran says she utilizes several tools such as Career Match and StrengthsFinder to help guide them.

“Many undecided students are actually overwhelmed by the many interests and strengths they hold. By helping them work through the options in an organized fashion, they realize that they’ll be able to pivot and pursue many different paths over the course of their professional lives,” she observes.

Killenberg adds, “Rolling out Career Communities during COVID was a huge achievement.”

Another pandemic-era win for the Office of Internship and Career Development was its Reinventing Summer webinar series. In response to summer internships being canceled or hours reduced during the summer of 2020, the team engaged students in career exploration and learning with alums speaking on topics that included “Leveraging LinkedIn to Build Your Network” with Kelly Quigley ’17 and Sydney Savage ’18 and “Careers in Tech” with Maris McEdward ’05.

Engagement with alums is critical to professional success, with roughly two-thirds of seniors indicating that it has contributed to their postgraduate plans. In fact, the Committee for Professional Success identified the importance of the transition from college into the workplace, especially for first-generation students and students in underrepresented groups. The Alumnae Board started its fall work, based upon the Alumnae Association Strategic Plan that aligns with the college’s goals.

Alumnae Board members Cristina Gutierrez ’12 and Laura Hurban ’81 are co-chairing the strategic team of alums to support professional success. Their first initiative was to pilot Mentoring Circles, small groups designed to help recent graduates’ transition. The goal is to support the successful launch to lives on their own as young professionals and graduate students while introducing the alum network as a lifelong resource. With topics that run the gamut from managing up to creating a budget, the Mentoring Circles are being created to meet the interests of Agnes Scott’s youngest alum professionals.

Tomeka Stephens, assistant director of internship programs for the Office of Internship and Career Development, says the virtual format will likely continue, in addition to in-person opportunities. Currently, 70% to 80% of students complete an internship by graduation.

“Internships play a vital role in students’ professional development and success,” says Stephens. “Students can utilize an internship to explore their interests and potential career field, to gain experience and transferable skills, and to network with professionals and increase their marketability upon graduation.” Notably, Agnes Scott ranked ninth in the nation in internships in the 2022 U.S. News & World Report Best Colleges edition.

Beyond its thoughtful services and academic programming, the Office of Internship and Career Development goes above and beyond to think of everything Scotties need for professional success, even clothes. They are in the midst of creating a professional clothing boutique of sorts in Inman Hall, filled with donations from alumnae and staff. The gently used or new attire—provided at no cost—will help students build an appropriate professional wardrobe for interviewing and the workplace. The boutique is just another example of how the entire college community is being brought together in support of its students’ success after graduation.

“At Agnes Scott, it is possible to both embrace the values of the liberal arts and be prepared for jobs and careers,” Killenberg says. “THE COMMITTEE FOR PROFESSIONAL SUCCESS WORK THAT WE DID EMBEDDED EXPOSURE, INTERNSHIPS AND HANDS-ON LEARNING INTO THE CURRICULUM, WHICH IS ALL VERY EXCITING. I THINK IT WILL TRULY MAKE A DIFFERENCE IN THE STUDENT EXPERIENCE AS WELL.”