CONNECT YOUR ACADEMIC AND PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE

National Endowment for the Humanities Chairman, William Adams, recently announced a new grant funding initiative called “The Common Good: The Humanities in the Public Square.” While “public humanities” efforts have long been a priority for colleges and humanities centers across the country, the NEH investment represents a significant milestone in debates over how to value…

A recent survey funded by the American Association of Colleges and Universities shows a striking disparity in how prospective employers and college graduates view their professional preparation. While employers tend to agree with graduates’ self-assessment when it comes to “staying current on technologies,” the survey finds much wider gaps (more than 30 points) in areas…

Forbes magazine cites a recent survey by The National Association of Colleges and Employers that identifies the ten skills most in demand in today’s marketplace. The top five in order of importance can be cultivated in any major, though some, such as verbal communication and the ability to obtain and process information are central to…

Nicholas Kristoff’s New York Times Op-Ed argues that tech innovation is animated by the arts. He offers examples of how recent humanistic thought can shape our response to 21st-century challenges. http://www.nytimes.com/2014/08/14/opinion/nicholas-kristof-dont-dismiss-the-humanities.html?_r=0

A Wall Street Journal article explores the increasing currency of a skill traditionally associated with the humanities. Noting that “mentions of critical thinking in job postings have doubled since 2009” the article goes on to explore the challenge of translating this fundamental academic skill across a professional landscape that defines it in various ways. While…

In a recent Op-Ed New York Times columnist, Thomas Friedman, cites Gallup research that bolsters the case for the value of individual mentoring and internship experience for college students. According to the survey, graduates who had professors “who cared about them as a person — or had a mentor who encouraged their goals and dreams…

The most recent issue of The Atlantic cites a Chronicle of Higher Education study that places experience outside the classroom at a much higher premium than traditional academic achievement measures such as grades and coursework. In this national survey, when it comes to hiring decisions, employers look first to a graduate’s internship and work experience.…

During and since the Great Recession employers have raised experience requirements and internships increasingly substitute for on-the-job training. Entry-level work requires more thinking and less checklist following than in the past with employers placing greater emphasis on soft skills such as interacting with clients.  Read the Wall Street Journal article here: http://online.wsj.com/news/article_email/want-an-entry-level-job-youll-need-lots-of-experience-1407267498-lMyQjAxMTA0MDAwNjEwNDYyWj Thanks to Scott…

Schooled in India, where the best education was rote memorization of technical knowledge, Fareed Zakaria tells in his recent graduation speech at Sarah Lawrence College how he discovered the power and advantage of liberal education in the U.S. He learned how to write, think, express himself and, above all, to self-teach. In an era when…

In a globalized world, “language is the new oil,” claims Hans Fenstermacher, CEO of GALA. It stands to reason that among the liberal arts disciplines, language study, especially translation and localization (a 32 billion dollar industry), is on the rise. The WSJ captures this rise in terms of higher salaries; it’s not clear, however, that…