Employing Humanities

Employing Humanities strengthens the connection between what students do in their coursework and life after graduation. The initiative provides Humanities undergraduate majors and minors with paid and for-credit experiential learning opportunities–from internships and undergraduate research to projects that put theory into practice. Thanks to a $1 million award from the Mellon Foundation, strategic support from The Humanities Institute, and generous donors, students are gaining the skills and experiences thatprepare them to thrive in diverse careers.

Through public humanities and service-learning partnerships with community organizations, students broaden their perspectives while making a tangible impact on society. These experiences nurture socially conscious leaders ready to contribute in professional, academic, and civic arenas.

Cross-disciplinary academic certificates such as Humanizing Technology and Visualizing Abolition Studies further extend the reach of humanistic training, giving students across majors opportunities to integrate humanities-based approaches into their studies.

At UC Santa Cruz, we believe the humanities are essential for building a purposeful, equitable future. They transform lives, cultivate empathy and critical thinking, and fuel the reimagining of our shared democracy. As our alumni know, students and faculty in the Humanities at UCSC have a long history of reimagining the world; today, we continue to prove that we excel as thinkers and doers.

A student sits in front of a computer, recording board, and professional microphone in a recording booth. — A Humanities EXCEL intern gets experience in editorial production at the community partner organization KSQD Community Radio.

Our Goals

Increase Experiential Learning Opportunities for Humanities Majors

Create Career Paths & Programs for Humanities Majors

Implement New Humanities Curricular Innovations for All Majors

Forms of Experiential Learning

Internship

Integrates knowledge and theory learned in the classroom with practical application and skills development in a professional setting at local non-profit organizations, community archives, or cultural institutions.

Public humanities project

A unique form of internship where students work on public humanities research, programming, or communications. Students contribute to the creation of a public-facing exhibit, product, or event.

Undergraduate Research

Scaffolded inquiry or An investigation conducted under the guidance of a faculty mentor, that makes an original intellectual or creative contribution to the discipline. Includes: apprenticeship, consultant, joint creation, research teams, course-based.

Research Assistantship

Students are hired to work directly with a faculty member on their current research project. Assistants gain many professional research skills that prepare them for graduate studies.

Project-Based Learning

An engaging, open-ended, and complex real-world question or Challenge motivates students to identify and research the concepts and principles needed to work through problems.

Community Engaged Learning

Meaningful community service or a community-engaged project that directly intersects with the academic field. Students apply their knowledge and skills to address or advocate for community needs.

Study Immersion Travel

Students actively participate in and are exposed to different cultures, languages, communities, and ways of life. Students gain education in their respective areas of study and an expanded cultural perspective.

Field Study

Students earn course credit to observe, interpret, and participate actively in the field. Faculty supervise an academic component.

What is Experiential Learning?

Experiential Learning is a process where students participate in cycles of direct experience and focused reflection to boost personal and intellectual growth and gain practical skills. It influences many teaching methods and can take place in different settings on and off campus. The approach usually follows a ‘learn-by-doing’ philosophy.

Experiential Learning Cycle

Experiencing

Active engagement through a concrete experience.

Reflecting

Reflect on & process the experience, analyze, and make meaning.

Thinking

Conceptualize ideas and develop new insights. Connect theory and practice. Examine lessons learned.

Applying

Act and apply the knowledge gained in future experiences.

Feedback

Continually identify improvement areas, reinforce learning.

How to Get Involved

A student wearing a blue and yellow UCSC shirt sits typing at a computer in an office at the Museum of Art and History