One of the most important things a person in an Arts & Humanities field can do before graduation is to plan and get experience *ANY WAY POSSIBLE* in a professional sense before you walk the aisle to get the empty diploma tube.
Here is my example of how to do this from the POV of an English Major: Go and present. Go anywhere you can get permission to read in front of people, be it a big or small crowd. In my case ( as a massive geek/anime nerd ) I was fortunate to have heard about the Schoolgirls & Mobilesuits Conference ( SGMS for short ). The conference is focused on Japanese anime and popular culture, with one of their more interesting aspects being the Mechademia Emerging Scholars Panel. This panel focuses on those who wish to present but are not yet in a Graduate Program and thus they cannot be a main presenter. Another amazing resource if you're interested in lectures and presenting is the website http://www.ted.com/talks. These lectures are amazing resources and I heavily encourage people to visit the site and see what they offer.
In 2011 I gave a presentation regarding a popular object in anime shows of many varieties (in this case, swords ) and so I expanded on the themes these weapons can represent: vengeance, forgiveness, familial bond(s), etc… I had a wonderful time presenting.
So was the best part hearing myself talk? No, of course not! It was the chance to actively participate with others whose academic interests were the same as me. The second best aspect was having one on one time to really get to know these people, people who HAVE published work, give lengthy presentations, and have earned PhDs in their fields. While some majors might not lend themselves to conferences, I am positive that every field of work allows for unpaid internships to try out, or that they have people willing to talk to YOU ( yes, you, whoever you are across from this monitor ).
If you do get the chance to travel aborad ( even, say, to Dallas or Austin for example ) I'd say your doing more for your Major than at LEAST 50-75% of those people in your major, maybe even more. Obviously, Majors that include internships/training in outside fields ( like Nursing ) can be difficult to achieve things like this in, but the idea is the same: to suceed in your field(s) you need to get out there. Traveling outside your comfort zone is genuinely a grand adventure for any reason, however I'd ventyure than if it leads to your own intelectual stimulation? It's in double the reward then!
If you do get the chance to travel aborad ( even, say, to Dallas or Austin for example ) I'd say your doing more for your Major than at LEAST 50-75% of those people in your major, maybe even more. Obviously, Majors that include internships/training in outside fields ( like Nursing ) can be difficult to achieve things like this in, but the idea is the same: to suceed in your field(s) you need to get out there. Traveling outside your comfort zone is genuinely a grand adventure for any reason, however I'd ventyure than if it leads to your own intelectual stimulation? It's in double the reward then!
I have heard some say the dominant part of college is the experiences away from mum and dad, that it is being alone in “the real world” that makes college an amazing experience. While … yes … this is certainly one aspect, another is that in the real world people connect and network, they work without pay to get ahead, and sometimes they pay for airfare to go out to weird and exotic cities ( like weird and exotic Minneapolis! ) to present papers and/or see other people present papers. Why? To get used to the nature of the field/work you want to experience, to get used to what college CAN’T prepare you for, for what you potential co-workers, work, and business relations will be like.
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