Experiential Learning

The world is changing. It’s simply not adequate anymore to learn about it by looking out the windows from inside a classroom. And although traditional teaching methods still play a valuable role, the Manchester experience is also infused with lots of opportunities for students to get out and experience life first-hand – to be immersed in their subjects and soak them in, while making valuable connections and developing transferrable skills.

Nearly 95 percent of graduates are employed, in further studies or in full-time volunteer services within six months of graduation!* Listed below, are valuable experiences that give MU students a competitive edge when they graduate.

*Five-year average is 94.6 percent based on a 93 percent knowledge rate.

Experiential Learning in the “Classroom”

Students in all majors have rich experiences at Manchester, starting their first year in college. It starts with academics, where your “classroom” might be a local chicken farm, incorporating organizational psychology methods into the operation’s business plan; the Eel River, in a pair of waders, collecting zebra mussels to monitor water quality; or at the Louvre in Paris, examining some of the world’s greatest masterpieces in an art appreciation course.

During Manchester’s January session, you can choose from several off-campus experiences that include travel to Europe, Australia, Nicaragua, Disneyworld and more. Now that beats reading about it in a book!

Learn more about January session and study away opportunities

Serving the community within North Manchester and beyond

Service

You can learn a lot about yourself by helping someone else and, at Manchester, students develop an understanding and desire to contribute to a cause bigger than themselves. From serving at community dinners, to volunteering at retirement homes, to helping build houses for Habitat for Humanity, experiences in service help to give you confidence and purpose and become your best self.

You can choose to take part in our Pathways program to volunteer at host sites across the United States for an entire summer – a life-changing experience for some students.

Last year, MU students, faculty and staff combined for more than 25,000 hours of service to the local community and beyond.

Learn more about service opportunities at MU

Research

Research at the undergraduate level doesn’t happen at all universities. At Manchester, professors inspire their students to acquire a greater understanding, and work alongside them to dig deeper into their subject, explore the unexplored, and discover the undiscovered.

At the Student Research Symposium held each spring, students reveal the findings of their personal research projects on topics of their choosing and, while everyone reaps the benefits of expanded knowledge and experience, the best oral and poster presentations win awards. Some students go on to present at national conferences.

Find an internship through MU

Internships

What better way to get real-world work experience than an internship with an actual company or organization in your career interest! With guidance from MU’s Office of Career and Professional Development, students get awesome internships with area companies, from advertising agencies to hospitals to professional sports teams to non-profits. Manchester students impress their employers, too, and some are even offered jobs for when they graduate.

Learn more about internships

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