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UT Faculty Incorporate Career Development into the Classroom

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Lisa Parker, a distinguished lecturer of Hispanic Studies and director of the Language and World Business Program in the College of Arts & Sciences, excels at bringing career development into the classroom. Over the past several years, she has partnered with the Center for Career Development & Academic Exploration (CCDAE) to help her students develop career readiness skills in several ways.  

Parker seamlessly embeds career into the curriculum for her Language and World Business (LWB) students by inviting the CCDAE career coaches to present personality and career preference and how to write a resume, and how to prepare for interviews. Students from her courses remarked that the presentations and feedback they received from career coaches, including Bukky Abdul and Erin Bennett, during Parker’s classes were very beneficial and helpful.  

“Students learn and experience the world in different ways and need creative opportunities to find how their strengths will lead to a career beyond UT,” Amber Williams, vice provost for Student Success, said. “Dr. Parker is doing remarkable work inside her classroom to bridge the undergraduate academic experience with the real world and provide her students those unique, transformative opportunities.” 

She has collaborated with the Employer Development team to host employer-facilitated practice interview sessions for students in the CCDAE’s interview suites. Companies such as 21st Mortgage Knoxville, PepsiCo, Frito Lay, and Bush Brothers have participated in the mock interviews. Additionally, she has forged relationships with employers, such as the Department of State, to deliver relevant content to her students. Through her efforts to bring career into the classroom and her involvement in multiple types of experiential learning, she has ensured that all LWB students have access to career education, setting them up for success after graduation.  

One example of experiential learning Parker has facilitated is having her students do poster presentations during International Education Week. “For the past eight years, my MFLL 199 class has been doing poster presentations during the International Education Week,” Parker said. “There will be a Language & World Business alumni guest speaker at the beginning, and then open time to walk around and listen to the students present their research posters combining language and business.” 

Contact:

Lacey Wood (laceywood@utk.edu)