Sessions

The social sciences can prepare students for lives of deep engagement with human communities, both professionally and personally. But while social scientists study human behavior—and, in training practitioners, even help try to shape it—are they ready to guide students through the practical and ethical challenges that are present in this kind of work? This session […]

Contemporary admissions processes to health-related professional schools have a strongly holistic focus. Consideration is given not only to academic performance, but also to a student applicant’s virtues, service, co-curricular experiences, and potential for practicing and teaching in their profession. For many students, however, the demands of their major field tend to absorb most of their […]

In this interactive session, participants will engage in dialogue about the challenges and joys of being arts educators, as well as the implications of this vocation for undergraduate students. The panelists will address the nuances of pursuing a vocation in each of their areas (visual arts, music, and theatre), while also addressing the common threads […]

Students interested in majoring in the fields of education and/or communication usually see themselves as pursuing their vocation based on person-centered values (i.e., callings to community and greater good), rather than economic incentives or professional prestige. However, in the face of recent broad cultural changes, students may be questioning and rethinking these choices. This panel […]

As the assault on the humanities and liberal education rages, religious studies and theology remain fertile ground for nourishing reflection on vocation. But at NetVUE member institutions, teaching and learning take place in a sea of religious contexts, at institutions ranging from faith-affirming to faith-bracketing (and everything in between). This workshop invites participants to consider […]

Literary studies might seem a somewhat surprising place for the teaching of vocation. After all, students tend to approach issues of vocation looking for answers—what should I do with my life?—and yet the close reading techniques privileged in literary studies often generate more questions than answers. Nevertheless, literary studies can in fact be a useful […]

“Know the facts, learn the algorithms, and employ the problem-solving strategy.” This approach is a common characteristic of college math and science courses; when students work hard and follow this method, they learn that they will get “the right answer.” But this pedagogical framework can also hinder science students, particularly when they wrestle with questions […]

Refreshments in Pre-Function North and South; Bookstall in Galleria

This session seeks to share and explore strategies toward a richer connection between vocational inquiry and the life of our student athletes. Using a workshop format, panelists will facilitate critical thought about campus structures that encourage (as well as those that sometimes prohibit) a two-way relationship between vocational discernment and campus athletic life. The panelists […]

Gladness, bliss, and passion are among the many positive terms regularly invoked in conversations about calling. But the reality of calling is often very different, both for our students and for ourselves. Vocation unfolds within messy and complicated lives—sometimes even in response to unexpected and unwelcome tragedy, debility, or hardship. This session invites participants to […]