Career Trek Planning and FAQs
Career Trek Planning
University of Delaware Career Treks are site visits to companies located within a geographic region or industry that is designed to provide an insider’s view of an organization’s employment opportunities and culture.
Career Trek Grants have been used by several academic departments. Previous visits include trips to the headquarters of URBN, Yelp, the Marriott, the Fox Chase Cancer Center and the Ketchum PR Agency.
Plan Your Trek
- How many students can you accommodate?
- What is the time frame for the visit? Do we need to arrive early to allow check-in time?
- Do you need any information ahead of time (e.g., student and faculty name, email, class year, major, etc.)? How soon do you need this information?
- Do we need anything for the day of the event (e.g., photo identification, nondisclosure agreements, etc.)?
- Depending on the time of the visit, are you able to supply food or refreshments? Is there an opportunity for students to purchase anything onsite?
- Can we share your contact information with our students after the event for future networking? Any additional colleagues?
- Are there any specific parking instructions we can share with our bus driver?
- Are there any onsite restrictions (e.g., no phones allowed, certain dress requirements, no photos, etc.)?
- What is the agenda for the visit (e.g., tour, company overview, meetings with different departments, etc.)?
- Allow ample time for traffic during rush hours when creating your final agenda.
- You will need the physical address of the drop-off and pick-up locations.
- If stopping at multiple locations, plan time for travel and loading and unloading the bus.
- You need both cell phone and office phone for your onsite contacts.
- You may want to consider small thank-you gifts for your site hosts.
- Depending on the duration of the trip, you may want to provide snacks or refreshments for the students or encourage students to bring snacks and water.
- Remind students to dress appropriately for weather, walking and meeting employers.
- Encourage students to research the companies you are visiting prior to and/or while you are on the way so they can have questions prepared and know the overall scope of the site visit.
- Determine how you will manage your attendance information.
- Keep emergency contact information for all students in attendance (e.g., student's cell phone number, emergency contact, allergies or medications). Should you have students in attendance who are under the age of 17, permission from a parent or guardian will be required to have the student participate.
- Don't forget to choose a centralized pick-up and drop-off location for your students. The UD Career Center is happy to be that location so we can check students in for your event!
- After your trip concludes, you may want to send thank-you notes to your site hosts in an effort to keep the lines of communication open for future visits.
Faculty FAQs
The faculty member or program advisor is responsible for securing the Career Trek location. The UD Career Center can assist with identifying sites with ample lead time.
The faculty member or program advisor is responsible for securing the bus transportation. The UD Career Center can provide contact information for the local bus providers.
Large charter busses can accommodate up to 56 passengers, so we suggest allowing up to 50 students to accommodate faculty and UD Career Services Staff members.
Once the outcome information (e.g., student attendees, outcome survey, full expense list) has been provided to the UD Career Center.
You may apply for one grant per semester.
You may not use grant money for alcohol or on food purchases that exceed $25.00 per student in attendance.
Once you have the general outline for your event in place, that is a great time to reach out! The earlier the better to ensure a seamless event for you and the students.
The grant requestor is ultimately responsible for the student outreach. The UD Career Center is happy to assist with outreach through social media, targeted emails through MailChimp and creating the event in Handshake. However, the faculty and/or department is the driving force behind a successful event!
Any repercussions that are set forth by the faculty should be clearly shared with the students prior to opening applications to attend. If a student needs to decline once accepted to the Career Trek, we suggest stipulating that they must provide written notice at least two business days prior to the event to share the change with the site host.
The UD Career Center is part of the Division of Student Life, which advances equity and inclusion, deepens student learning and drives holistic development through education, experiences and communities.
