Your Path is Your Own
All your life, at every school, you've had boxes placed in front of you to be checked off. At Evergreen, your path is your own. Take charge of it in your own way to get the education you want.
Talk to someone. That might be your current or past faculty, or you can talk to an Academic or Career Advisor anytime, including a peer advisor. Share your concerns and get a broader perspective.
Take the time to reflect. Working on your Academic Statement is an excellent way to structure your reflections.
Consider an Internship or Individual Learning Contract. Once you've got a solid start at Evergreen, Internships and Individual Study can allow you to develop higher-level skills.
Find Your Path
Nobody tells you this, but for many jobs, it doesn't really matter exactly what you take in college. It matters more that you gain the skills in thinking, analysis, creativity, teamwork and communication that numerous surveys show employers are really looking for.
At Evergreen, you’re learning more than just the subject matter of your classes. A liberal arts education gives you the tools and skills for wherever you find yourself in a year, five years or 20 years.
Start with your own interests. Explore Evergreen’s Undergraduate Studies paths, fields of study and the catalog, or Contact an Advisor to match your interests to existing programs.
Be open to trying something new. College is a great time to explore new ideas and subjects.
Talk to your faculty. They've seen your work so far and they may have ideas for where you might want to go next. If you want to master a specific subject, they likely can point you in the right direction.
Career Exploration
If you don’t know what you want to do after college, that's totally normal! Talk to a career advisor. We can help you with ways to research which types of careers relate to your area of study, to explore options and create a strategy, then work on your own and come back when it’s right for you.
We recommend the Campbell Interest and Skills Survey to drill down into your interests and skills. Your results will give you general areas to explore or avoid and give you a sense of what careers might be the right fit. You’ll get useful language to continue your research too.
Plan for a Specific Outcome
Start by drafting a plan to meet your career goals.
- Meet with an advisor. If you know what subjects you want to take, but can’t find what you need in the catalog, talk to an advisor. Or talk to us about how to structure an internship or Individual Learning Contract to cover subjects or gain skills.
- Use the editable Degree Planning Guide. Draft a plan for your academic journey. Include Fields of Study and any pre-planned paths you’re interested in, study abroad ideas, advanced research and other experiences you want to explore. Whether you are just starting or transferring to Evergreen with some credit, this chart will help guide you to graduation.
Download the Degree Planning Guide (PDF, 550KB)
In some professions, you need to take specific prerequisites. Work with an advisor as soon as possible if any of these are on your radar:
- Teaching
- Architecture
- Medical professions
- Graduate school in the sciences
Check Your Graduation Progress
- Review the Degree Requirements and necessary credits for BA, BS, and BA/S degrees.
- Go to Academic Progress on My Evergreen to see your total credits, including upper division science credits.
You’ll be eligible to graduate when you have enough credits to complete your declared degree and when you have submitted your Final Academic Statement.
Top Skills Employers Are Looking For
- Works well in teams—especially with people different from yourself
- Writes and speaks well
- Thinks clearly about complex problems
- Analyzes a problem to develop workable solutions
- Is creative and innovative in solving problems
This is what you gain from an Evergreen liberal arts education.