When we invite students into meaningful mentoring relationships—whether in research labs, service experiences, congregational settings, career exploration, or beyond—we create transformative spaces for vocational discernment and discovery. Given the increasing importance of hands-on, immersive learning in undergraduate education and the vital need for human connection in our work, this gathering invites faculty members, staff, and administrators to consider how vocation, mentorship, and experiential learning intersect in a higher education context.
Through keynote speakers and interactive workshops, this gathering will bring together colleagues to examine how mentorship in experiential learning opportunities fosters vocational formation. Participants will consider questions such as:
- How can mentorship prepare students not just for taking on a first job, but for living lives that matter?
- How does mentoring students through research (asking questions, testing hypotheses, embracing failure, and iterating toward discovery) mirror the process of discovering one’s calling?
- How does vocational formation happen within the interconnected ecosystem where the church and academy meet?
The gathering will provide participants with opportunities to engage with speakers, explore practices they can to take back to their institutions, and connect with colleagues from other institutions committed to vocational exploration in undergraduate education.
Complete information for this NetVUE regional gathering will be available on the Presbyterian College website later this spring.
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