Denison’s Sustainability Career Pathway (SCP) gives students the practical skills and connections to help them develop a solid foundation for a career in sustainability and enable them to lead organizations in making positive social and environmental impacts.

Students from any major learn to translate the sum of their academic and co-curricular experiences into marketable career skills in the field of sustainability. Internships, curricular studies, workshops, and project management opportunities will augment classroom experiences to clearly demonstrate proficiency in sustainability-related career skills. Participation in the Sustainability Career Pathway isn’t a degree requirement for SES majors; however, it can fulfill the experiential component.

The Sustainability Career Pathway is a competitive opportunity with limited slots available.

In the Sustainability Career Pathway, students will:

  • Partner with a mentor in their preferred sustainability field. Mentors will coach and advise students as they explore and engage in skill-building and career-related opportunities.
  • Intern with sustainability-related businesses and organizations.
  • Build a career network.
  • Develop and implement campus and community-related sustainability projects.
  • Develop leadership skills as community sustainability ambassadors.
  • Learn important career-building skills through a series of workshops.
  • Build a portfolio of accomplishments and develop a sustainability-related resume.

Geared toward Sustainability and Environmental Studies students but open to any student with an interest in sustainability-related careers, this program is designed to rapidly enhance students’ understanding of sustainability issues and potential actions to help improve the environment and communities where they live.

Program Overview

The Sustainability Career Pathway is a joint program of Denison’s Office of Sustainability and the Sustainability & Environmental Studies Program, in collaboration with the Austin E. Knowlton Center for Career Exploration and Denison Edge.

How do I participate?

You must apply to the program. Applications are accepted in the fall for that academic year. For more information, contact Director of Sustainability Jeremy King at kingje@denison.edu.

Key Aspects of the Program

Learning Through Experience

Central to the program are opportunities for students to gain skills in leadership, evaluation and assessment, process improvement and design thinking, meeting facilitation, strategic planning, grant writing, media relations, website design, and a host of other career-building skills.

Sustainability Ambassadors

Students will serve as sustainability ambassadors in all areas of campus. As student-athletes, tour guides, campus employees, leaders of student organizations, or in other pursuits, SCP students will leverage firsthand knowledge of Denison’s sustainability efforts to help educate the campus community and beyond.

Internship Opportunities

The Office of Sustainability, the Sustainability & Environmental Studies Program, and the Knowlton Center will work with each student to identify a meaningful off-campus internship opportunity in the student’s field of interest. These internships allow students to gain critical job experience while also building a network of contacts in the field.

Project Management

Designing, implementing, and managing a project from start to finish is one of the single most important skills to develop. Students will be encouraged to utilize opportunities in their internship experiences and/or through coursework at Denison to develop projects related to sustainability on or off campus. Central to this will be the development of effective evaluation tools and project reporting. The SCP helps students to develop and facilitate these projects and will guide students in transferring the project experience into a career narrative.

Capstone Experience

The SCP program culminates in a capstone experience: a professional interview in which the student demonstrates their breadth and depth of knowledge related to sustainability. The capstone experience gives participants an opportunity to practice their presentation skills and market their sustainability knowledge and experiences in a job interview setting. As part of the capstone interview, students will design and consolidate their work from the program into a portfolio for post-undergraduate career endeavors.