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210 Taking Career Initiative
Fall 2020 / 1 cr

This one-credit course explores the meaning and value of your liberal arts and sciences education to your future career -- no matter what your major.  

Through weekly lecture and discussion meetings, you will reflect on your experiences, your strengths, and the value of your liberal arts and sciences education at UW-Madison; explore a career community that interests you through both digital social networks and in-person interviews; and practice techniques to present your value to a prospective employer in writing, in person, and online.

Level: Elementary
Requisites: None. Open to all students regardless of year or major.
Instruction mode: Online (Some Classroom)
Lecture: Selected Wednesdays, 5:40pm or 6:45pm, 3650 Humanities
(lecture also available streamed/recorded online)
Discussion: Various days, Online Synchronous (on weeks when there is no lecture)
Credits: One credit

How does this course work?
Special considerations during COVID-19 pandemic

Hybrid mode of instruction.  In Fall 2020, INTER-LS 210 is being taught in a mode which provides both online access and in-person options for students, depending on their circumstances during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic crisis.

• Assignments and text postings. At the start of each week, students must turn in one ore more Assignments online through Canvas.  Often we will also ask students to post selected reflections about those assignments to the online text Discussions board for their section as well.  These are always due by 7am each Monday.
• Either lecture or discussion section each week, never both.  Each week, we will hold either a 50-minute lecture with the professor (Wednesday evening), or a 50-minute discussion with your TA (assorted times during the week) -- never both in the same week.  Check the schedule on the home page of the Canvas site, or use the Modules area of the site to see what's happening each week.
• On weeks when we meet for lecture. During the weeks that students meet for lecture, those lecture meetings are held Wednesday evenings in 3650 Humanities.  If you originally registered for the course as an in-person student, you are now registered for one of two Wednesday lecture slots -- 5:40pm or 6:45pm.  If you originally registered for the course as an online student, you can watch the lecture afterward online.  And because we know people's situation may have changed, let me be clear; any in-person student may always choose to watch the online lecture instead.
• On weeks when we meet for discussion section. During the weeks that students instead meet for discussion, those discussions are held synchronously online at selected times Monday-Friday.  We will use our BBCollaborate Ultra conferencing tool for these meetings, which you access through the Canvas site.

Special practices for in-person lecture.  Our in-person lectures happen on selected Wednesday evenings in 3650 Humanities.  This is a lecture hall that holds normally holds 500 students, but we will only be seating 80 students a time to preserve physical distancing.  Remember to follow these safety practices in lecture:

• We will wait to start each lecture five minutes late, after the normally-scheduled starting time, to give students time to file into their seats in an orderly way that preserves physical distancing.    
• Students should fill seats from the front center of the lecture hall outward, in order, and sit six feet away from each other.  (Appropriate seating will be marked.)  
• Free cleaning supplies will be available for students to clean their hands and seating areas.
• We will dismiss each lecture five minutes early, before the normally-scheduled ending time, to give students time to leave their seats in an orderly way that preserves physical distancing.
• Students should wear face coverings at all times.
• And -- if you feel ill, please do not come to in-person lecture, and instead view it online.

See more COVID-19 related information here.  

Learning outcomes

• Develop and communicate a compelling personal career narrative about your path through a liberal arts and sciences education, with respect to a specific target career community.

Students tend to earn high grades in this course, by completing all of the assignments on time and with integrity.  However, you will only get out of this course what you put into it. Many of the assignments cover tasks like reflecting on your experiences, putting together a resume, and setting up a LinkedIn site, which you'll have to do anyway -- so why not get some guidance and credit along the way?

Syllabus on one page

(Click on the image to download this syllabus as a one-page PDF)

Textbooks

We use three textbooks for the course.  The first two are printed books that are available at the University Bookstore and also at online retailers (they should cost about $20 each):  

• Katharine Brooks, You Majored in What? Designing Your Path from College to Career (2017) Links to an external site..  This book is a comprehensive guide to the job search process, written by an expert in career advising and targeted to liberal arts and sciences university students.  It should remain useful to you throughout your time at UW-Madison and beyond.
• Don Clifton, Clifton Strengths for Students (2017) Links to an external site.. This book has a unique code in it that allows you to take an online strengths assessment for one of your assignments. If you do not have a copy of this book, or if you purchase this book as a used copy, you will need to spend an extra $12 to directly purchase access to the online assessment.

The last textbook is freely available online: 

• Greg Downey, Working Toward Success: Building a Career in the Liberal Arts and Sciences (2019).  This 200-page PDF textbook is freely available to download chapter-by-chapter here.    

The fine print

• Grading.  Assignments in this course are worth roughly two-thirds of your semester grade, and discussion section attendance and participation is worth roughly one-third.  Semester grades are computed out of 100 possible points on the standard A-F scale:

93-100 = A
88-92 = AB
83-87 = B
78-82 = BC
73-77 = C
63-72 = D
0-62 = F

• Absences from discussion section. Students are expected to attend and participate in each discussion section in order to earn full points for that section, whether section is held in-person or online.  A TA may occasionally excuse a student from section for an emergency or medical reason.  Students should request any excused absence within 48 hours of the section meeting date.
  
• Late assignments. Students are expected to turn in written assignments online that are complete and on time.  Incomplete assignments, or assignments not turned in by the deadline, will earn zero points.  A TA may occasionally grant a student an extension on an assignment for an emergency or medical reason. Students should request an extension within 48 hours of the assignment due date.
  
• Multiple absences, missed assignments, and/or lack of communication.  Students who miss two discussion sections in a row, or who fail to turn in two assignments in a row, will be emailed by their TA (with a copy to the professor) out of concern for their well-being.  If a student does not respond to us about their plans for making up missed work, our next step is to contact the Dean of Students office.  
• Professionalism.  The topic of this class is how to connect your academic and extra-curricular university life to your future life in the world of work. Part of what we practice in this class is professional conduct, including such things as:
  
  • clear and timely communication
  • regular attendance and participation
  • respect for the views and experiences of others
  • appropriate use of personal electronics
  • constructive participation in discussion without monopolizing the discourse (which includes listening as much as talking)
  • appreciation for the returning alumni who give freely of their time to make this class succeed (such as following up with thank-you notes)
• Personal Electronics. You may use a laptop, a tablet, a phone, or other personal electronics during in-person class meetings only to take notes or to explore resources related to the lecture. You may not use personal electronic devices during in-person class meetings for social media or any other recreational activity; to do so is disrespectful to the instructors, distracting to your fellow students, and wasteful of your tuition dollars. Judicious and effective use of personal electronics is a crucial workplace habit that you should learn and practice now.
  
• Academic Integrity.  By enrolling in this course, each student assumes the responsibilities of an active participant in UW-Madison’s community of scholars in which everyone’s academic work and behavior are held to the highest academic integrity standards. Academic misconduct compromises the integrity of the university. Cheating, fabrication, plagiarism, unauthorized collaboration, and helping others commit these acts are examples of academic misconduct, which can result in disciplinary action. This includes but is not limited to failure on the assignment/course, disciplinary probation, or suspension. Substantial or repeated cases of misconduct will be forwarded to the Office of Student Conduct & Community Standards for additional review. For more information, refer to http://studentconduct.wiscweb.wisc.edu/academic-integrity/
  
• Accommodations For Students With Disabilities.  McBurney Disability Resource Center syllabus statement: “The University of Wisconsin-Madison supports the right of all enrolled students to a full and equal educational opportunity. The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), Wisconsin State Statute (36.12), and UW-Madison policy (Faculty Document 1071) require that students with disabilities be reasonably accommodated in instruction and campus life. Reasonable accommodations for students with disabilities is a shared faculty and student responsibility. Students are expected to inform faculty [me] of their need for instructional accommodations by the end of the third week of the semester, or as soon as possible after a disability has been incurred or recognized. Faculty [I], will work either directly with the student [you] or in coordination with the McBurney Center to identify and provide reasonable instructional accommodations. Disability information, including instructional accommodations as part of a student's educational record, is confidential and protected under FERPA.” http://mcburney.wisc.edu/facstaffother/faculty/syllabus.php
• Diversity & Inclusion.  UW-Madison institutional statement on diversity: “Diversity is a source of strength, creativity, and innovation for UW-Madison. We value the contributions of each person and respect the profound ways their identity, culture, background, experience, status, abilities, and opinion enrich the university community. We commit ourselves to the pursuit of excellence in teaching, research, outreach, and diversity as inextricably linked goals.  The University of Wisconsin-Madison fulfills its public mission by creating a welcoming and inclusive community for people from every background – people who as students, faculty, and staff serve Wisconsin and the world.” https://diversity.wisc.edu/
• Extra credit.  Students may choose to complete several points of extra credit assignments -- supplemental activities to help you get the most out of this course, which also improve your grade. These are listed in the Assignments tab on the left. 
• Other Rules, Rights & Responsibilities. See http://guide.wisc.edu/undergraduate/#rulesrightsandresponsibilitiestext
  

Testimonials

After taking this course, students report that it works!

• 93% felt better prepared to utilize campus resources to assist with career planning.
• 85% felt better prepared to apply for an internship
• 85% of students felt better prepared to explore career options

Student reflection from summer 2016