Career Courses

The Internship and Career Center teaches/co-teaches a number of for-credit, career course offerings geared toward facilitating students' career exploration and planning.

Undergraduate Courses

AMS 95: Careers and Identity in American Culture

(2 units- Letter Graded)
This course will guide students through the career exploration process, using the components of Design Thinking. Participants will explore aspects of their identity using a variety of assessment tools, and use this knowledge to research possible career paths and choices. Students enrolled in this course will develop the tools that they need to intentionally choose their direction and search for opportunities to build the skills they need to be successful. This course is typically offered in Fall, Winter, and Spring Quarter.

AMS 95: Careers and Identity in American Culture for Athletes

(2 units - Letter Grade | Course Prerequisites: Must be a current Intercollegiate Athletics athlete)
This course will guide students through the career exploration process, using the components of Design Thinking.  Participants will explore aspects of their identity using a variety of assessment tools, and use this knowledge to research possible career paths and choices. Students enrolled in this course will develop the tools that they need to intentionally choose their direction and search for opportunities to build the skills they need to be successful. This course is typically offered in Fall, Winter, and Spring Quarter.

Career Discovery Groups (CDG)

Career Discovery Groups, a partnership between the College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences and the Internship and Career Center, give freshmen and first-year transfer students an opportunity to explore career possibilities and make academic choices for future success. Students who participate in Career Discovery Groups have higher rates of retention at UC Davis. Interaction with faculty and advisors helps them gain focus; guidance from graduate student mentors helps Career Discovery Group students learn to navigate the research university and use campus resources. All College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences (CA&ES) freshmen and first-year transfer students are welcome. Check out this page for information from the College of A&ES.

Freshman Students: The freshman Career Discovery Group includes three courses in major and career exploration, one per quarter during freshman year. Graduate students trained as Career Discovery mentors and experts from the UC Davis Internship and Career Center lead these courses. You are encouraged to enroll in all three quarters. Prepare to position yourself for success at UC Davis and beyond!

  • Fall Quarter: SAS 006A (1 unit, 1 hour/week, pass/no pass)
  • A Career Discovery mentor leads you in learning how to navigate the university and explore your personal skills and values as they relate to your major and career exploration. Set the stage for a 1st year at UC Davis full of insight, connection, and knowledge of where to go to find the support that you need.

  • Winter Quarter: SAS 006B (3 units, 3 hours/week, letter graded)

  • Learn key career preparation lessons from an ICC career advisor, and continue to discuss with your Career Discovery mentor and your peers. Have you wondered about how to write a resume, how to network for your success, or how to ace an interview? Learn this and more, and build a foundation for your career launch.

  • Spring Quarter: SAS 006C (1 unit, no weekly classes, pass/no pass)

  • Attend career development field trips and reflect on how these trips relate to personal career goals. Put your knowledge into action and visualize next steps.

Transfer Students: The transfer student Career Discovery Group includes one accelerated course, meant to give 1st year transfer students a running start to their time at UC Davis. Transition more smoothly into your new school while also developing key career readiness skills. Graduate students trained as Career Discovery mentors lead these class sections with the assistance of experts from the Career Center. Prepare to position yourself for success at UC Davis and beyond!

  • Fall Quarter: SAS 106A (1 unit, 1 hour/week, pass/no pass)
  • A Career Discovery mentor leads you in learning how to navigate the university, exploring your personal skills and interests, and building the foundation for your career launch. Students enrolled in this course will develop the tools that they need to intentionally choose their direction, and will receive valuable advice from Career Center experts and working professionals.

BioLaunch Fellows Program

The BioLaunch Fellows Program is designed for students to participate in career exploration, professional development, and experiential learning over the course of their 4 years at UC Davis. Each course in the series is 1-2 units, Pass/No-Pass, and no final. Fellows are invited to special events to network and hear from career professionals, and they have dedicated career advisors to support them in their career journeys.

  • BioLaunch Fellows Program Seminar Series
  • The BioLaunch Fellows Program is designed for College of Biological Sciences undergraduates to participate in career exploration, professional development, and experiential learning over the course of their 4 years at UC Davis. Each course is taken sequentially and are 1-2 units, Pass/No-Pass, and no final. Fellows are invited to special events to network and hear from career professionals, and they have dedicated career advisors to support them in their career journeys.
  • BIS 006: Career Pathways Seminar (Year 1)
  • This course will provide students with an opportunity to explore career possibilities and make academic choices for future success. Students explore diverse career options through hearing from weekly guest speakers with a background and/or career in biological sciences. Students practice building professional networks, identifying transferable skills, and developing materials and strategies for landing relevant experiential learning opportunities in the biological sciences fields. Open to first-years who have completed BIS 005 or with permission of instructor.
  • BIS 060: Career Labs (Year 2)
  • This course builds on the first-year seminar course by engaging guest professionals with a background in the Biological Sciences in interactive sessions with students. This course will expose students to a wide range of roles they might consider after graduation, and help them explore how the skills they acquire in the classroom, through volunteering, and through internships would make them good candidates for future employment. Open to second-years who have completed BIS 006.
  • BIS 106: Experiential Learning Seminar (Year 3)
  • This course leads students to reflect on current or very recent work or volunteer experiences, and discuss issues such as organizational / office culture, conflict resolution, identity / equity issues, appropriate networking, mentorship, time management, etc. Fellows participating in unpaid experiences are eligible to apply for a $3,000 stipend. Open to third-years who have completed BIS 060.
  • BIS 160: Career Next Steps Seminar (Year 4)
  • This course supports students in the job search and graduate / professional school application process as well as introducing financial literacy principles. Students apply lessons learned throughout the BioLaunch Fellows Program, and give and receive peer support and coaching on applications and interviewing. Open to fourth-years who have completed BIS 106.

ENL 149: Topics in Literature - Topic: Career Decision-Making and English

(4 units – Letter Grade | Course Prerequisites: English major/minor, ENL 003 or UWP 001 or UWP 001V or UWP 001Y)
Taught in collaboration between the English department and Internship and Career Center, this class will help provide answers to the perennial question: "What can you do with an English major?" In particular, the focus will be on career exploration and decision-making. Using the design thinking process, characterized by curiosity, trial & error, and collaboration, students will have an opportunity to explore a variety of traditional and innovative career paths and think critically about this process. While developing their own career narrative, students will research the career paths and decision-making of others. Students will prototype and refine career tools including networking, writing for the job search, and interview skills. Additionally, students will take self-assessments, read a variety of materials about the workplace today, and write critical reflections. Using such techniques, this class aims to help students in English understand and articulate the application of their major to the world of work. This course is offered once every academic year, typically in the Winter/Spring Quarter.

Graduate Students

AMS 298: Designing Your Professional Life (listed as "Group Study")

(2 units – S/US Grading | Course Prerequisites: Open to UC Davis Master's and PhD students only)
Graduate students will use the design thinking process, characterized by curiosity, experimentation and collaboration, to examine a variety of traditional and innovative career paths. Highly interactive sessions include: Self-assessment and occupational research, Skills development (networking, writing for the job search, interviewing), and interdisciplinary interactions with career professionals from a variety of industries & work environments. This course is typically offered in Fall and Spring Quarter. No auditing of this course is available.

For general questions about the career courses above, email iccreception@ucdavis.edu.