Career-Ready Experiences consistently have been shown to positively affect student learning outcomes and success. Research underscores that these experiences are more effective in the aggregate than in insolation; they benefit all students— particularly those from historically underrepresented backgrounds; and they help students stand out as job candidates.
The Gettysburg Approach guarantees our graduates enter the workplace ready for their first job and for every job after, throughout entirety of their careers. This central commitment is why Gettysburg College ranks in the top 1% nationwide among liberal arts colleges for 40-year return on investment, according to The Georgetown University Center on Education & the Workforce ROI Study: ROI of Liberal Arts Colleges.
Gettysburg College is a community of doers—and doers Do Great Work.
Through our rigorous curriculum in the liberal arts and sciences and the Guided Pathways, Gettysburg College guarantees every student a Career-Ready Experience, so they can apply the knowledge and skills they’ve gained at Gettysburg out in the world and enhance their effectiveness in the workplace upon graduation.
According to a 2023 American Association of Colleges and Universities (AAC&U)study, The Career-Ready Graduate: What Employers Say about the Difference College Makes, 97% of employers report that “hands-on application of ideas,” when coupled with classroom learning, helps to enable college graduates to enter the workforce ready for short- and long term success.
A Personal Advising Team will partner with each student to identify which Career-Ready Experience from the Guided Pathways best intersects with their career aspirations. Every student who participates in the Guided Pathways will have the opportunity to compete for grants ranging from $1,000 to $4,000 that can be applied to their selected Career-Ready Experience.
A Career-Ready Experience could include at least one of the following Guided Pathway experiences:
- Off-campus or on-campus internship
- Working on a long-term Center for Public Service project
- Foreign travel and study through the Center for Global Education
- Campus leadership role
- Faculty-mentored research
Some students will choose to pursue more than one of these options. These experiences will typically occur during a student's junior or senior year.
Class of 2028 students are eligible by opting in to the Guided Pathways, applying for their Career-Ready Experience by announced deadlines, and completing all participation requirements.