Smart Moves for Liberal Arts Grads: Finding a Path to Your Perfect Career

Most people would love to have 20/20 hindsight on their careers. In Smart Moves for Liberal Arts Grads, college career experts Sheila Curran and Suzanne Greenwald have assembled the next best thing: the collective wisdom of a diverse and inspiring cast of success stories—twenty-three liberal arts graduates who have gone on to all manner of fascinating and satisfying professions. The authors have combined lessons from the stories with their own hands-on experience with thousands of students and graduates to outline a framework for finding a perfect career. What makes Smart Moves different is that it provides essential career advice while being fun to read. Readers will be struck by the frankness of the biographies of real graduates whose careers have taken twists and turns. Todd turned his passion into a living as the founder and CEO of several small businesses and a professional cellist; Thad's path took him from English major to a dream job in the front office of a major league baseball team; and a subway ride helped Sharon speed her intended career leap from a luxury department store to journalism. What binds them together is that they have all made smart moves on the way to career success—both during their liberal arts education and in the real world.Smart Moves not only champions the value of a liberal arts education, it also embraces the complexity of careers, and the notion that many different factors contribute to success: education, experience, attitude, personal characteristics, and a good dose of luck. Smart Moves is an inspiration to all those who are seeking proven strategies to follow their passion—no matter what their age.The quarter million liberal arts students who receive diplomas each year will truly benefit from the insights of Smart Moves. But this book is equally helpful for high school students (and their guidance counselors) looking at colleges, for graduates still looking for their life's work, and for parents who want to understand career realities for their children. An innovative career guide for our stressful, fast-paced world, Smart Moves for Liberal Arts Grads illuminates valuable career lessons with sharp advice and an unparalleled framework for success.

Suzanne Greenwald holds a PhD in education policy from the University of Chicago, a master’s degree in education from Harvard University, and a bachelor’s degree in English and American literature from Brown University. Suzanne is an expert on school-to-work issues, work-related learning, and school/business partnerships. She is currently employed at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, serving as an educational advisor to the Cambridge-MIT Institute. She lives in Westwood, Massachusetts.
Sheila J. Curran has been the Fannie Mitchell executive director of Duke University’s Career Center since 2003, and has more than twenty-five years of experience advising students and graduates on career and employment issues. Prior to Duke, she was the director of Career Services at Brown University. Her earlier professional experience was in the field of human resources at three major universities, including the University of Michigan. In 1996, Sheila switched careers from human resources to career services, and discovered her true passion: helping liberal arts students and graduates attain their career dreams. Sheila lives in Durham, North Carolina.