The advisor advantage
Wonder which "degree enhancements" are right for you? Today we look at how your advisor can help determine the best engaged learning and extracurricular experiences for you!
Description of the video:
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I had a student terribly, terribly stuck; just horribly stuck.
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Just - internal battle, didn't know, just didn't know.
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And finally he said, "I want to be around boats."
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I said, "OK, good!
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Now what?
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OK, you want to be around boats."
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He goes, "I don't know, I want to be around boats."
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I said, "OK, let's get you around boats.
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Where do you want to be around these boats?"
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He goes, "I want to be in London around boats."
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Excellent!
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All right.
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So that summer, I worked with him through that semester.
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He got an internship in a boat yard, at a shipping boat yard, in London.
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I am one of the kids that changes their major all the time!
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I started off coming in wanting to do something art-related.
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But then I told myself that maybe I couldn't do something art-related in the future that
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could get me a sustainable career.
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So I dabbled in psychology, education, interior design, until it finally just led me back
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to a studio major... It's just always been a passion of mine, and I didn't think I could
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make a career out of a passion.
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And then someone was like, "You should just try it.
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Just do it."
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And most of the time it was my advisors that kind of pointed me in the direction to follow
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my dream.
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Sometimes just, well, what career, well, what major - that doesn't seem to have the same effect sometime
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of "OK, envision this person that you'd like to be in ten years.
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What is she doing?
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What kind of people is she working around?
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Is she extroverted, is she introverted, does she enjoy information, or data, or does she
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enjoy children, does she... and sometimes that will get the conversation.
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And I could see her (this was an appointment I just had yesterday)... she even mentioned
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at one point, "You know, my dad has this one friend who's doing this and I always loved
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talking with her."
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And we talked about having an information interview with that friend, and going to where
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she works, and just asking her, "What did you major in?
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What kinds of things were you interested in?"
Put it into practice!
- In this episode we discuss important things to keep in mind when choosing classes. Besides the times they’re offered and what is required, what else might it be important to think about?
- Besides your major and individual classes, what other choices about your college education might matter where input from an advisor could be useful?
- What does it really mean to “explore” as a college student, and what can you tell your advisor that would help them connect you with opportunities to do that?
- Make an appointment with your advisor to talk about “degree enhancements”—what they are and which ones might be a good fit for you.