Last month, I hosted a post-academic career strategy workshop for English graduate students at Loyola University.

‘Wayfinding Without a Map’ introduced and laid out in steps a post-academic career strategy for humanists, tailored to the strengths and interests of this group of students. Most are M.A.-seeking and generally interested in continuing to refine and build on their teaching and writing in new areas.

This was a particularly valuable experience as most participants were only beginning to explore options outside of university teaching and research and discovering where related forms of work are done. We began with where they already had some familiarity and interest and branched from there.

They did some initial assessments and, based on those, began hands-on discovery of roles and sectors for further exploration.

Students took home a portfolio guiding their further discovery, skill development, network building and professional positioning post-degree.

Several students asked important questions about working with different technologies, from content management systems, to expectations around AI use in different fields, to developing their skills with textual and spatial analysis tools.

A standout element of this workshop was a high level of engagement. The depth and seriousness of student questions showed a willingness to confront the reality of the academic job market, and prepare to position themselves as strongly as possible in new fields. They now have powerful tools to do that, as well as a free followup consultation with us.

If you are or know a department leader that understands the value of trained humanists and the need for agility and adaptability, I would love to talk.