In alignment with the College of Natural Sciences’ developing Career Ecosystem, we are offering a special round of Pathways Grants focused on supporting the integration of career readiness into CNS courses. We hope to surface a range of professional and career preparation course integrations, including 1) development of new course materials or activities, 2) collaborations with alumni and employers, 3) increasing students’ awareness of how a course connects to their life outside of their degree plan. Ideas outside of these categories are also encouraged. We intend to fund 10 unique projects to surface a wide range of novel innovations.
Proposal Submission Instructions
- Proposals can be submitted via this 10-minute Career Education Innovation Grant Application.
- Proposal period
- Application open October 1st - November 6th.
- Applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis and will be considered for funding as available.
- Final notifications will go out by the end of November
- Proposals require a brief description of the project, including:
- Project title
- Target audience (specific class or student population)
- The challenge or opportunity you are addressing
- Alignment with CNS Career Education pillars (translatable skills, community of support, career navigation)
- Collaborators
- How you plan to integrate career education to address the challenge/opportunity
- New course materials/resources that will be developed to implement the project
- Explanation of how the project can be adapted by other CNS faculty/classes
Additional Guidance
- Scope: Proposals can range in breadth from focusing on a specific lesson or activity to addressing curriculum across courses. Projects should be able to fit into the spring semester including preparation, implementation, and assessment.
- What type of project can I submit? Anything that connects to professional or career development within the curriculum of a CNS course with the goal of improving the support for undergraduate learning and long-term success. Please note that we will prioritize projects that:
- include collaboration with the CNS Career Services, Health Professions Office, or academic advising
- target large enrollment first- and second-year courses within CNS degree paths
- highlight one or more of the CNS Career Education Pillars:
- Developing translatable skills (communication, collaboration, adaptability, resilience, etc.)
- Building a community of support (connecting with people and resources)
- Navigating their career path (exploring, researching, and designing careers)
- can be adapted or easily used by other faculty
Awardee Expectations and Deliverables
- All awardees will receive a $3,000 honorarium for their participation and completion of the following
- Integrate proposed idea into spring semester course
- Assess project using a shared assessment tool given to students in your class
- Attend monthly grantee meetings to share progress and receive/provide feedback
- Share overview project at a spring teaching workshop/conference (TBD)
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Create an OER resource from your pilot to share with other faculty. This will be a guided process including feedback from program administrators.
Questions
- What if additional time or additional funds are required?
People proposing projects that require greater time or resources than the current request for proposals allows should reach out to STEMx to explore possible options. Additionally, people proposing more extensive projects should consider applying for a CNS Pathways Grant in the next cycle.
- Other questions?
For additional questions, please contact the Office of STEM Education Excellence at stemx@cns.utexas.edu.