Education is changing in Vermont. And Vermont State University (VTSU) is leading the way with an education grounded in the real-world: Plugged into local communities, that lets students work at what they love and gain experience as interns or employees. The Learning and Working Community at Vermont State has taken off and our students and local communities are not just on board — they’re all in.
At VTSU, you’ll gain real-world skills with local businesses and nonprofits, and see increased value to your education, too. Opportunities to learn, work, and earn industry-recognized credentials are built right into your academic experience at VTSU!
Try out a career, apply new skills, and practice solving problems in your field
Gain experience with businesses and schools, nonprofits, and government and learn how your coursework applies directly to your career. You’ll gain first-hand knowledge in often paid experiences that reduce the cost of your education, too.
Graduate career-ready and confident your field-of-choice is right for you.
VTSU Students Work with Northwoods Stewardship Center
Students worked with Northwoods Stewardship Center in Vermont’s Northeast Kingdom. Learn about their experience in the video here.
Student Stories
Dane Mallett
Dane spent the summer with a non-profit serving the homeless in Vermont’s Northeast Kingdom, writing grants, fundraising, researching, and designing a livable community to meet their needs. The experience opened his eyes to homelessness in his state, knowledge the criminal justice major will carry with him into his future.
Olivia Clogston
Olivia added an internship to her job as a dispatcher, applying coursework from her psychology major to study how police officers process and handle difficult situations with the public and for their own mental health. She’ll apply this new knowledge to her job and to her future career in law enforcement.
Camden Patten
Camden took part in a Learning and Working Community internship experience with Northview Weather based at Do North Coworking during summer 2021. A Climate Change Science major, Camden conducted research to help improve the prediction of solar power for grid management applications.
Questions?
Contact: Careers@VermontState.edu
Learning and Working connects Vermont businesses, schools, and organizations with motivated students and staff. These students fill critical roles, build up our communities, and bring their knowledge and skills to classrooms indoors and out. VTSU students dig right in, and many of our partners wonder how they did it all without them!
VTSU’s Partnership with Memphremagog Watershed Association
Questions?
Contact: Careers@VermontState.edu
VTSU’s Learning and Working Community provides a wealth of connections for students and extends the reach of the university out into the greater community at the same time. Faculty whose students are taking part in internships and learning and working opportunities with our partners note that those students bring the experience they gain back into the classroom.
When students engage in multiple-month experiences in a studio, running sound for concerts, teaching outdoor ed activities to fifth graders, and taking part in fieldwork restoring wetlands and buffers, for instance, they understand what it means to be an educator, to work in the arts, to work in the field in their field. It’s valuable not only for learning what it’s like to do that kind of work, but if that work is really for them. Students then bring this depth of their experience back to their courses, enriching class discussions for all.
Faculty Stories
Professor Ian Balcom, Natural Sciences
“These experiences offer students all of the life skills and work skills that they can’t get in class, accelerating their growth curve in the field they want to work in. It gives students the opportunity to try out the field with faculty support — and while getting paid. The organizations VTSU partners with offer great training opportunities for students. Learning and Working gets us closer to ‘this is what you’re learning and why.”
Professor Joe Gittelman, Music Business and Industry
“Students have more to offer and share in classes after taking part in these kinds of experiences. The shared body of knowledge in classes and how they teach each other is remarkable.”
Professor Ben Mirkin, Outdoor Education, Leadership, and Tourism
“The learning on the part of my students has been tremendous. They are applying the theories they are learning about in the classroom to the experiences they are having right now. It’s also a long-term investment for the university. The kids in the schools our students work in learn about the college and get a connection with us that wasn’t there before.”
Questions?
Contact: Careers@VermontState.edu
