Knowing what you know, what will you do? Explore your calling through a vocation practicum!
Practicum Process
- Schedule a time to meet with the GPS practicum instructor to review practicum expectations and responsibilities.
- Secure practicum placement.
- Complete application and Statement of Expectations and Responsibilities and submit to GPS for approval.
- Practicum Seminar dates: Meets seven Monday evenings from 7-9pm; specific dates to be determined.
Practicum Overview
Students who wish to receive academic credit for an internship or practicum experience not offered through the major or minor department may receive such credit through GPS 211. This course requires prior approval of the practicum instructor in Global Programs and Studies (GPS), and participation in a seminar during the practicum experience. Offered in the Fall, Spring, or Summer.
“The word vocation is a rich one, having to address the wholeness of life, the range of relationships and responsibilities. Work, yes, but also families, and neighbors, and citizenship, locally and globally—all of this and more is seen as vocation, that to which I am called as a human being, living my life before the face of God. It is never the same word as occupation, just as calling is never the same word as career. Sometimes, by grace, the words and the realities they represent do overlap, even significantly; sometimes, in the incompleteness of life in a fallen world, there is not much overlap at all.”
This anthology draws together a wide range of contemporary and classical texts -- including fiction, autobiography, and philosophy -- offering challenge and insight for those reflecting on what to do with their lives. The selections cover some of the Western tradition's best writings on human life, its meaning, purpose, and significance. This excellent volume includes works by such varied figures as Aristotle, Dietrich Bonhoeffer, Frederick Buechner, Willa Cather, Dorothy Day, Annie Dillard, Robert Frost, Abraham Heschel, Thomas Lynch, John Milton, Martha Nussbaum, Theodore Roosevelt, Amy Tan, William Butler Yeats...
GPS 211: General Practicum Vocation Seminar (2 to 4 credits)
Students complete 40 hours of internship/work experience for each credit earned and attend a seminar course, which meets 7 times during the semester (offered fall & spring on-campus; summer students complete seminar in an off-campus modular format with instructor). The course focuses on Christian understandings of vocation and calling, fosters self-reflection on the work experience, and facilitates assessment of work-related skills. The credit earned will count as elective credit towards graduation. Students must have completed at least two semesters on-campus or at another college or university to enroll.
This course debriefs and synthesizes the theoretical and practical realities of vocation and calling. It will give consideration to the internship experience from several perspectives, offer preparation for post-graduate plans, and provide a forum to discuss issues pertaining to a liberal arts education, calling, vocation, and Christian living. It will be a place where we discover more clearly what we should do and who we should be.
Learn More
Contact the practicum instructor/supervisor in the Global Programs and Studies office via email, or call the office at 630.752.7309.
Application
Students must meet with the practicum instructor in GPS and complete the Application for General Practicum prior to registering for the course.