SBS Pathways

SBS students' university experience is guided by SBS Pathways, SBS' holistic approach to curriculum and advising that prompts students to plan and integrate the academic, experiential, and professional development dimensions of their education. Students' academic pathways include General Education courses, courses within their major, and electives; students may also choose to pursue a minor, certificate, or secondary major. Students' experiential pathways round out their classroom experiences; these may include co-curricular activities, study abroad or domestic exchange, civic engagement, service learning, or leadership positions such as teaching or research assistantships, independent research, peer advising, or participation and leadership in on campus organizations or their communities. Students pursue their career and professional development pathways throughout their college years as they build their professional profiles through an extensive array of workshops, internships, the SBS College to Careers course, student employment, job shadowing, networking events, and work experience. Through their classes and advising experiences, students are prompted to plan, reflect on, and integrate their pathways and to develop a compelling personal and professional narrative so they can describe their insights and competencies to others. To learn more see: https://www.umass.edu/sbs/sbs-pathways-philosophy.

SBS Pathways guides students through the development of their own competencies and goals for success as they:

• Explore their academic, personal, and professional interests with a sense of inquiry and purpose
• Pursue academic, experiential, and professional development opportunities that build their unique SBS Pathways through UMass & beyond
• Engage in ongoing self-reflection as an integral component of growth & learning
• Learn to recognize, communicate, and apply the vital competencies they develop while at UMass
• Build concrete skills and habits of mind to thrive as they transition into college and pursue meaningful work or further study upon graduation

SBS Pathways is a frames student success as purposeful engagement with the academic, experiential, and professional development aspects of a student’s college education. It’s also an orientation to student support that offers students multiple forms of guidance as they pursue and integrate the various dimensions of their own personal pathways across their entire college experience.