Meaningful opportunities to prepare for life after graduation are rare among our nation’s leading colleges and universities. Typical internship programs often fall short, and academic requirements may so overshadow career planning that graduates emerge with no clear sense of what they want to do. Now, a handful of schools are moving to change this troubling trend.

At Stanford, Tulane and Notre Dame, students work in community settings to develop active citizenship skills. Leading co-op schools, such as Northeastern University, Georgia Tech and the University of Cincinnati, place students in full-time work experiences related to their majors. Clark University encourages students to link classroom study with off-campus involvement in their fields of interest, such as urban development and social change, innovation and entrepreneurship. Guidance counselors say that programs like these allow young adults to see their education in action before they graduate.

Source: Christian Science Monitor