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Beyond the Degree

At Boise State we encourage graduate students to engage their graduate education with a focus beyond the degree. 

Beyond the Degree is a program designed to help students reflect on their studies and develop the ability to articulate a compelling story about what they are learning and why it is valuable.

Graduate students at Boise State gain valuable disciplinary expertise, critical thinking abilities, and unique skill sets in their respective graduate programs. The Beyond the Degree efforts aim to amplify these experiences by:

  1. Discovering ways for graduate students to incorporate meaningful reflection on the application of their disciplinary knowledge and critical thinking skills
  2. Pursuing opportunities for students to identify and practice articulating the value of their graduate studies as they prepare for personal and professional pursuits beyond graduate school

Telling Your Story

At Boise State we want our graduates to move forward with more than a few new letters after their name. We want them to leave with a compelling narrative about the value of their graduate experiences.

Our aim is to seek opportunities for students to identify and practice telling the story of how their disciplinary expertise, critical thinking abilities, and specific skills sets gained while pursuing their graduate degree will help them successfully pursue their unique personal and career goals.

These efforts on developing a narrative are designed to not only support students in the process of self-identifying as a professional with a graduate education, but to generate the ability to explain to potential employers the value of their graduate learning beyond the successful completion of a graduate project, thesis, or dissertation.

Getting Started

In 2019, the Beyond the Degree efforts will include inviting conversations among graduate coordinators, graduate faculty, graduate students, and other interested stakeholders to discuss ways to bring a Beyond the Degree focus to graduate studies across Boise State.

These Beyond the Degree conversations will seek ways to work with others across campus to ensure graduate education at Boise State includes opportunities for students to reflect on their learning, define personal or professional goals, and craft a compelling narrative as to how their graduate studies will help them succeed beyond their degree.

Partnering With Others

Beyond the Degree is a partner program in the Graduate College working closely with Beyond the Major and other university initiatives committed to helping students tell their story and gain a more robust sense of the knowledge and abilities their disciplines offer as they enter the job market and move beyond their studies at Boise State.