Academic Life

Saint Mary’s College offers graduate students an outstanding curricular program in the form of master's degrees and a professional doctorate. These programs are supported by the Office of Graduate Studies as well as other offices and services throughout the College. This office also implements graduate academic policies and procedures of the College.

Division of Academic Affairs

The Associate Provost and Dean of Graduate Studies currently heads the Office of Graduate Studies which includes the Director of Graduate Admissions, the Assistant Director of Graduate Admissions, and the Graduate Studies Marketing Coordinator. This office serves the needs of incoming graduate student. In concert with the Associate Provost and Dean of Graduate Studies and the Graduate Program Directors, additional offices on campus support the ongoing needs of our graduate students.

These additional offices, as well as the individual graduate program within which the student is accepted, provide direct support for students seeking advising, course registration assistance, advice on study strategies, stress relief, and career advising.

Academic Offices, Programs and Services

Career Crossings Office

The Career Crossings Office (CCO) offers services to graduate students through their graduate study and beyond with lifetime services. Information on career resources and programs is available online at saintmarys.edu/career-crossings, by contacting the office in 114 Spes Unica, by calling (574) 284-4775, or emailing cco@saintmarys.edu. Services and assistance can be provided in person, virtually, and by email.

Appointments can be made with the CCO by logging onto Handshake (https://saintmarys.joinhandshake.com).

Exploring Career Options

Instrumental to the foundation of career development and growth of students, the CCO provides support and guidance in exploring career options associated with fields of interest. The CCO can provide counseling and access to:

  • Career assessments including the PathwayU, Myers-Briggs Type Indicator, and CliftonStrengths.
  • Informational interviewing.
  • “What Can I do With a Degree in…?”and alumni career path resources.

Job Searching

The CCO helps students explore career goals and strategies to meet their individual needs and maximize job search results. Information and resources are available to develop networking, researching, and résumé and cover letter writing skills.

Résumé and Cover Letter Writing

Résumés and cover letters are an opportunity to provide a great first and lasting impression with potential employers. The CCO assists with developing and fine tuning job search correspondence to make a positive impact on employers. Resources are available through the my.saintmarys.edu (http://my.saintmarys.edu) CCO portal community as well.

Networking and Interviewing Skills

Perhaps the most difficult to develop and master, networking and interviewing skills are critical to the success of job searches. The CCO provides one-on-one mock interviewing and counseling sessions to assist in developing interviewing skills as well as in learning the basics of networking. Throughout the year, the CCO hosts programs that allow students to utilize and develop both networking and interviewing skills.

On-Campus Recruiting Program

Employers from various industries visit the Saint Mary’s campus each year to recruit for jobs and internships. Employers conduct interviews, information sessions, and information tables in which students are encouraged to participate and explore options offered by the employers. The office also hosts an annual career and internship fair.

Handshake

All students can create an account on Handshake to access job opportunities. Students can connect with employers, apply for positions, post résumés, and more. Access the site at https://joinhandshake.com.

Alum Resource Network

The ARN houses contact information for over 8,000 alumni throughout the United States and abroad working in all industries and with all types of employers. Access the ARN at http://connect.saintmarys.edu.

The Center for Women’s Intercultural Leadership

The Center for Women’s Intercultural Leadership (CWIL) was established at Saint Mary’s College in December 2000 with the support of a grant from the Lilly Endowment Inc. CWIL is an innovative collaboration between Saint Mary’s College faculty, staff, students and local community leaders and national and global partners. CWIL advances Saint Mary’s College’s mission of “preparing students to make a difference in the world” by empowering students to realize their call to leadership and to develop the intercultural knowledge and competence critical in today’s increasingly interdependent world. In the spirit of the College’s sponsors, the Sisters of the Holy Cross, CWIL promotes human transformation and systemic change, from the local to the global context, by providing challenging justice-based educational opportunities.

The Center is organized around three core components. Intercultural Leadership empowers students to use diversity, gender, and culture as a strength in their leadership. Global Education promotes engagement with other cultures through study abroad experiences, a student club, international student services, and the internationalization of the College’s curriculum. Research and Scholarship serves as an interdisciplinary think tank where scholars can contribute to an ongoing dialogue about how human cultures interact and the roles women play in today’s global reality.

Accessability resource office

Saint Mary’s College will provide reasonable accommodations to qualified graduate students with disabilities who request accommodations and provide appropriate documentation.

Documentation should be provided by an appropriately credentialed professional:

  • a physician for physical disabilities,
  • a psychologist with training in the learning disabili­ties of adults and adolescents for learning disabilities, or
  • a mental health provider licensed to diagnose psychiatric disabilities.

The specific content of the documentation will vary with the nature of the student’s disability, but in all cases it should include a diagnosis, justification, recommendations, and a clear rationale for the recommendations.

The student is responsible for arranging accommo­dations with the Accessibility Resource Office  and with their professors each semester. Students in online graduate programs who need accommodations must email the Accessibility Resource Office at aro@saintmarys.edu to set up an appointment via phone or video chat such as Skype. The student will sign a release of information allowing the Disabilities Resource Office to inform his or her professors of the approved accommodations each semester, and must make a follow-up appointment to meet with each professor to discuss the implementation of the accommodations. Faculty are not authorized to grant academic accommodations and those receiving requests will refer students back to the Disabilities Resource Office.

Office of Student Success

Located in the Academic Resource Center in Madeleva Hall, the Office for Student Success offers workshops, programs, and individual consultation for all Saint Mary’s College students. This office provides assistance to students covering topics such as time manage­ment, study strategies, and stress relieving strategies.