Working

I worked on a project that took a semester or more to complete

Long-term projects help students build confidence, persistence, and real-world skills. Students who completed such a project were 10% more likely to experience overall wellbeing after graduation.

These strategies offer guidance on how to structure meaningful projects within courses and support students through complex, sustained learning experiences, fostering faculty-student connections and equipping students with skills that support their future careers.

Strategy Details Resources
Relationship-Driven Mentoring

The cornerstone of engaging students in long-term projects is cultivating a strong mentoring relationship. This approach prioritizes understanding the student’s unique needs, experiences, skill sets, and interests, rather than focusing solely on the end product or specific skills.

  • Foster organic conversations to understand students deeply
  • Identify and nurture student interests, goals, and potential
  • Connect personal insights to project opportunities
  • Encourage a responsive, reciprocal relationship where both mentor and mentee benefit
  • Maintain ongoing communication and support
  • Address ethical considerations in mentoring relationships
  
Emphasizing Real-World Value and Connections

Highlighting the project’s value and real-world applications is crucial for sustained student engagement. Understanding the “why” behind their work and its connection to future goals provides motivation and a sense of purpose, especially during challenging phases of the project.

  • Align projects with future career expectations and employer needs
  • Demonstrate how skills practiced will lead to meaningful change
  • Connect learning outcomes to broader life goals
  • Engage with the community through service-learning opportunities
  • Link undergraduate research to relevant literature
  • Illustrate the long-term value of web portfolios
  • Emphasize ethical considerations in project work
  • Showcase how year-long projects contribute to community impact and career development
  
Targeted Skill-Building

This strategy focuses on developing skills that are directly applicable to graduate school or future careers, boosting students’ confidence and competence.

  • Build confidence through hands-on experience with research methods and statistics
  • Encourage critical thinking by involving students in decision-making processes
  • Demystify complex concepts by breaking them down into manageable parts
  • Share personal experiences, including mistakes, to make learning relatable
  • Create an approachable, supportive learning environment
  • Foster excitement about acquiring new skills and knowledge
  • Emphasize the development of transferable skills valuable across various contexts

Developing a research question

How to build a job-getting portfolio

Toolkit for Service Learning
Leveraging Resources Effectively

This strategy involves teaching students how to access and utilize various resources, including institutional, community, and professional networks, to enhance their learning experience and project outcomes.

  • Integrate institutional and community support into project work
  • Build collaborative partnerships with community organizations
  • Connect students with professional networks in their field of study
  • Teach students how to identify and leverage available resources
  • Guide students in developing professional skills through real-world interactions
  • Encourage students to build relationships with community partners
  • Demonstrate how to align project goals with community needs and professional standards

Student Civic Engagement Fellowship at Ole Miss

Community Engaged Fellowship for Faculty at Ole Miss (with course development and extracurricular project options)

Student Internships

Gulf South Summit Conference is focused on community-engaged learning and is student-friendly 

Association for Experiential Education

Council on Undergraduate Research
Contributors

Jenny Baumgartner, Louisiana State University

Amber Emanuel, University of Florida

Suzanne Lindt, Midwestern State University

Amy Schumacher-Rutherford, University of Mississippi

Beverly Stiles, Midwestern State University