Week Eight: Engagement-Focused Liberal Arts Academy (CELA)
Oberlin College's Center for Engaged Liberal Arts (CELA) is a hub for students seeking to broaden their educational horizons beyond the traditional classroom. The centre offers a wide range of opportunities in experiential learning, research, internships, study away, entrepreneurship, and career development, enhancing student education and preparing them for the real world.
Oberlin College has a long-standing tradition of hands-on experiential learning, integrating practical experience with academic study. Students can engage in community-based projects, internships, and collaborative research that connect them with real-world challenges and professional contexts.
The college supports student research broadly, often integrated with experiential and internship opportunities to foster deep engagement in liberal arts scholarship. While specific programs through CELA are not explicitly listed, students can find a research mentor and join a research cohort at CELA to delve deeper into their areas of interest.
Internships, both on campus and off, are a key part of Oberlin’s engaged learning approach. Students often gain career-related work experience through internships that connect classroom learning to career preparation. Oberlin offers Federal Work-Study and Regular Student Wage jobs, which provide valuable work experience alongside academic pursuits.
CELA promotes study away programs that allow students to pursue academic and cultural learning internationally or in different settings within the U.S., supporting immersive educational experiences beyond Oberlin’s campus. Study Away helps students develop global perspectives and can be coordinated through dedicated staff such as Experiential Learning Programs Coordinators.
While no direct details were available on entrepreneurship programs within CELA specifically, Oberlin's broad liberal arts framework encourages innovative thinking and engagement with creative projects, including the BA+BFA program, which supports intense arts entrepreneurship during a fifth-year immersion in Cleveland’s arts community.
The college actively supports career development by providing students with employment opportunities on campus and connecting them to internships and job placements that build professional skills. Oberlin’s Student Employment Office and associated career advising help students transition smoothly to post-graduation careers through flexible work-study jobs, federal and college-funded student roles, and internships.
Winter Term projects can be done independently or in a group, and can take place on campus or anywhere around the world. Winter Term provides Oberlin students with a four-week immersive experience in January, allowing them to pursue interests outside of regular course offerings. Career advisors help students find and fund internships for the summer or during the academic year.
The Center for Engaged Liberal Arts (CELA) is located on the ground floor of the Mudd Center, making it easily accessible for students seeking to take advantage of these opportunities. Through CELA and associated offices, Oberlin College offers students integrated and multifaceted opportunities in experiential learning, research engagement, internships, study away, and career preparation, including some unique programs like the five-year BA+BFA for arts entrepreneurship.
- Students can enhance their education and career development by participating in Oberlin College's Center for Engaged Liberal Arts (CELA) programs, which offer skills training through experiential learning, research, internships, study away, and entrepreneurship.
- Oberlin College's Student Employment Office, in connection with career advising, plays a significant role in students' career development, providing them with employment opportunities on campus, internships, and resources to find and fund career-related experiences, preparing them for the real world.
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