HFA Careers & Internships
Careers Credit Courses: Spring 2022
Check SPIRE for specific course requirements and details.
From Here to Career for Humanities and Fine Arts majors (HM&FNART 292M | Two credits): Open to declared HFA majors & HFA Exploratory Track students
This career development course is designed to help Humanities and Fine Arts students prepare for life by acquiring important professional skills and perspectives. The class will explore a variety of subjects, including how to customize resumes and cover letters, job and internship search strategies, interviewing skills, the importance of internships and networking, and what qualifications HFA majors bring to the job market.”
The Major & Beyond: Career Exploration for English Majors (ENGLISH 491AC | Two credits): Open to Sophomore & Junior English Majors
This career development course helps English Majors pave the way to a valuable post-graduate experience—be it a program, internship, or job. Students will practice important job search skills, learn to articulate the worth of your major, and leave the class with a better sense of their vocational direction. In addition to receiving individualized guidance in creating a cover letter and résumé of immediate use, other assignments are likely to include attendance at career events, interviews with professionals from fields of interest, a professional presentation, a short paper researching professions, and participation in a mock interview.
History Career Development (HISTORY 398A | Two credits): Open to History Majors
This career development course is designed to help students prepare for life after the BA by acquiring important professional skills and perspectives. The class will explore a variety of subjects, including what qualifications History Majors bring to the job market, the importance of internships and networking, customizing resumes and cover letters, job and internship search strategies, and interviewing skills.
Senior Bridges (HISTORY 498S | One credit): Open to Seniors
This career development course is designed for Seniors who have already taken a career development course to prepare for life after the BA by acquiring important professional skills and perspectives. Meets every other week.
Follow HFA Careers on Instagram!
Be sure to follow HFA Careers on Instagram (@umasshfa_careers) for updates, event information, and individual internship opportunities.
HFA Five Years Out (We go everywhere.)
- Account Manager
- Actor
- Administrator
- Architect
- Art Therapist
- Artist
- Bicycle Mechanic
- Bookkeeper
- College Success Advisor
- Communications Executive
- Content Strategist
- Designer
- Editor
- Entrepreneur
- Family Therapist
- Fulbright Scholar
- Full Stack Engineer
- Graphic Designer
- Illustrator
- Lawyer
- Marketing Executive
- Medical Receptionist
- Musician
- Outdoor Guide
- Pastor
- Peace Corps Volunteer
- Pharmacy Tech
- Physical Therapist
- Podcast Producer
- Police Recruit
- Professional Nanny
- Professional Sports Team Dancer
- Research Associate
- Senior Account Executive
- Social Media Strategist
- Software Engineer
- Speech Language Pathologists
- Teacher
- Technology Librarian
- Town Counselor
- Trash Hauler
- Truck Driver
- Victims' Assistance Program Assistant
- Writer
Career Success upon Graduation with a Humanities Degree
Research has shown that Humanities students who are successful upon graduation do three things:
- Get good grades (a 3.0 cumulative GPA or better).
- Do internships. Internships. Note the plural.
- Participate in career center programming. Gain the five career navigation skills (customizing a resume, customizing a cover letter, learning how to interview, networking, and learning how to find opportunities), and attend events such as career fairs, networking nights, employer information sessions, and alumni panels.
But there is a challenge to all this...
The real challenge is that none of these things are mandatory. They all require extra effort on your part. No one is going to make you do an internship, or force you to learn how to customize your resume. And let’s be real; no one is going to make you get good grades. You are the engine that will make this all happen. It is very easy to get pulled in a lot of directions and become very distracted.
But you are in control of what you choose to do. And if you want to get a good quality job upon graduation, among other things, it is important to get good grades, do internships, and participate in career center programming.
The Careers and Internships team of the HFA Advising and Career Center is here to educate you in career skills; provide you with internship, networking, and job opportunities; and offer one-on-one advice for landing internships on planning your path to a career. Our staff strives to create a welcoming environment that considers the needs and perspectives of students of all ages, social and cultural identities through openness, acceptance and inclusion. We respect, value, and foster a supportive community for all.
