A series of posts on integrating vocation into a gateway course for the major, featuring conversations between a professor and her student.
Gateway courses typically focus on discipline-specific training, assignments, and formation. When we emphasize these foundational habits in the context of vocational discernment, our students begin to recognize that they are members of a guild, with its craft and notions of purposeful living made more apparent. As they enter this community, students become more able to apply their disciplinary knowledge in contexts that help them name and own those skills in ways that resonate with their emerging sense of vocation.
Sustained attention to questions of calling in gateway courses helps our students succeed at and move beyond academic assignments, making them more practiced at the art of self-reflection, and thus better able to articulate and apply their skills in real-world contexts. In our gateway course for the English major at St. Norbert College, the reading, writing, and analysis that the students engage in help them build skills in effective communication, critical thinking, attentiveness, empathy and cultural literacy, problem solving, and the organization and presentation of information.
What makes this course different from other introductory courses in our field is our sustained attention to conversations about calling and vocation. Even as we read standard literary texts, we frame the discussion of them with readings focused on vocation and the value of the humanities and the liberal arts more broadly. Students’ writing in the course culminates in an essay in which they compare three literary texts that explore vocation, foregrounding notions of purposeful living within our disciplinary context.
Below, Caroline reflects on how the skills she cultivated in our course—through the analysis of and writing about literary texts—translated into her campus work experience and off-campus internship.
Caroline: When I first declared my English major, I was drawn to the worlds contained within stories and the power of language, and I imagined a future filled with books. But I wasn’t sure how those passions would translate into something beyond the classroom—how the ability to analyze a novel or craft an argument could become practical career skills. My first glimpse of this possibility came at the Press Times when I was handed my first assignment with a fast-approaching deadline. I sat staring at my notes, overwhelmed by the responsibility of crafting a story that would not only inform but also engage readers. Similarly, at the Writing Center, I found myself face-to-face with students seeking guidance, each with their own struggles, doubts, and voices waiting to be heard. In both spaces, I quickly learned that my ability to read critically, communicate effectively, and think on my feet would serve me far beyond the classroom. These weren’t just academic exercises—they were essential tools for storytelling, problem-solving, and discovering my path forward.
Effective Communication
At the Press Times, I learned that communication is not just about writing well—it’s about adapting to your audience. Each story required me to shift my tone and style to match the readership, ensuring that my writing was both engaging and informative. In the Writing Center, I tailored my feedback to each student’s needs. Some needed encouragement, others needed direct, no-nonsense guidance, and many needed a mix of both. Whether I was summarizing a complex local policy for a general audience or helping a student refine a thesis statement, my ability to communicate effectively was key.
Critical Thinking
Journalism taught me to question everything. When covering a story, I had to assess the reliability of sources, cross-check facts, and synthesize information into an accurate and compelling narrative. The Writing Center required a similar skillset—helping students break down abstract essay prompts into clear, actionable steps. In both roles, I relied on my ability to analyze, evaluate, and propose solutions, often under tight deadlines. This skill has helped me not only in my work but also in discerning my own path forward: weighing options, considering perspectives, and making informed decisions about my future.
Close Reading and Attentiveness
Close reading is not just for literature classes—it’s a skill that served me in both journalism and writing center consulting. At the Press Times, it meant combing through interviews and background materials to extract key points, ensuring accuracy and depth in my reporting; it required going through hours of interview audio in order to extract the quotes with the most impact. In the Writing Center, attentiveness to detail allowed me to catch inconsistencies in students’ drafts and help them clarify their arguments. These experiences reinforced how much meaning lies in the small details, a lesson that extends far beyond the page.
Empathy and Cultural Literacy
One of the most unexpected but invaluable lessons I learned was the role of empathy in communication. In the Writing Center, I saw firsthand how important it was to create a welcoming environment for writers of all backgrounds. Every student came in with a different relationship to writing—some confident, others deeply anxious. Approaching each session with sensitivity to their voice and intentions helped them feel understood and empowered. That same mindset shaped my approach to journalism. Writing about communities and individuals requires fairness, accuracy, and a responsibility to represent diverse perspectives authentically. The ability to see through someone else’s eyes has been transformative, not only in my work but in shaping my aspirations.
Problem-Solving
Both journalism and consulting require quick thinking. At the Press Times, problem-solving meant finding creative angles for stories or adapting when an interview didn’t go as planned. At the Writing Center, it meant helping students work through writer’s block or untangle complex arguments. In both cases, I had to navigate obstacles in real-time, a skill that has proven just as crucial outside of work. Whether considering career paths or making life decisions, the ability to troubleshoot and pivot has been invaluable.
Organization and Presentation of Information
One of the most practical skills I developed was the ability to structure information in a way that makes sense to others. Journalism taught me how to craft an article that draws readers in while presenting key facts upfront. Consulting showed me how to guide students in structuring their essays, helping them arrange their ideas for maximum impact. Both experiences reinforced the importance of clarity and structure—not just in writing but in articulating my own aspirations and goals.
The fact that this gateway course embedded questions of calling and vocation encouraged us to engage in meta-conversation throughout the semester. We directly discussed—in real-time—the very habits and skills students were in the process of cultivating. In Cultivating Vocation in Literary Studies, Erin VanLaningham and Stephanie Johnson suggest, “As we immerse ourselves in the study of language and literature, we see the world both as it is and as it can be.” Each of these skills played a role in shaping Caroline’s path, helping her discern not just what she was good at, but also what she enjoyed and might do more of. The ability to communicate, analyze, empathize, and adapt prepared her for a range of opportunities, from writing and editing to roles that require strong interpersonal skills and problem-solving abilities. As she continues to explore her future, she carries these lessons with her, knowing that the foundation she built as an English major is both practical and deeply meaningful. Encouraging students to see the specificity of their skills in a broader context—and thus discern how their gifts and talents might best serve others—moves us all beyond checking the boxes of a major program, and into an experience that promotes our collective flourishing.
Deirdre Egan-Ryan is the director of faculty development at St. Norbert College outside of Green Bay, WI, where she is also professor of English. She is a NetVUE Faculty Fellow and was part of the inaugural cohort of NetVUE’s Teaching Vocational Exploration Seminar. Her essay, “Community-Based Pedagogy, Literary Studies and Vocation,” appears in Cultivating Vocation in Literary Studies and grew out of her years directing the program in academic service-learning and community engagement at St. Norbert. Her many vocations include rescuing overlooked big dogs and laughing with her teenage sons.
Caroline Van Sistine is a rising senior at St. Norbert College. A double major in English and sociology, she is interested in gender, race, intersectionality, and vocation in modern literature. She works as a consultant in the St. Norbert Writing Center and also interns at The Green Bay Press Times. Last past summer, she was awarded a Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship and worked with Deirdre Egan-Ryan on researching narratives of vocational flourishing in modern Black literature. A former gymnast, Caroline discovered one of her vocational passions for reading novels as she rehabilitated from an ankle injury.
To read the previous posts in this series by Deirdre and Caroline, click here.