How do you build a meaningful and sustainable international career in a rapidly changing world? This course invites students to approach career development as a creative and ongoing process rather than a single fixed choice. Through design thinking, coaching, reflection, and international collaboration, participants explore career possibilities aligned with their strengths, values, and ambitions.
Working with peers from different countries and disciplines, students develop transferable skills, experiment with career ideas, and create a personal career prototype portfolio to support future academic and professional decisions.
Many students experience uncertainty when thinking about their future careers. Rapid technological change, global challenges, shifting labour markets, and increasing international mobility require new ways of approaching professional development. Rather than focusing on finding a single “right” career path, this course encourages participants to view career development as an iterative process of exploration, experimentation, reflection, and adaptation.
Drawing on design thinking, coaching approaches, reflective practice, and contemporary career development research, the course supports students in exploring their strengths, motivations, values, interests, and possible future directions. Participants learn practical tools and strategies for navigating uncertainty, making informed career decisions, and building careers that are both personally meaningful and socially sustainable.
The course takes place in an intercultural and interdisciplinary learning environment that brings together students from different academic and cultural backgrounds across Europe. Through interactive workshops, collaborative activities, peer learning, and guided reflection, participants gain insights from diverse perspectives while developing skills that are increasingly valuable in international professional contexts.
Throughout the course, students will:
A central element of the course is the development of a personal “career prototype portfolio,” where students document reflections, experiments, insights, and possible future directions. Rather than producing a fixed long-term career plan, the portfolio encourages flexibility, curiosity, and continuous learning.
The course is especially valuable for students who:
Because the course is highly interactive and collaborative, active participation in weekly sessions, peer discussions, and reflective activities between classes is strongly encouraged.
At the end of the course, the learner will be able to
• Apply design thinking principles to explore and prototype possible career pathways in line with their personal values, interests, and competencies.
• Identify and articulate their individual purpose, strengths, and motivations in the context of global sustainability and societal impact.
• Use creative and analytical tools (such as empathy mapping, reframing, ideation, and rapid prototyping) to address personal and professional challenges.
• Collaborate effectively in transnational and intercultural teams to exchange feedback and co-create innovative career ideas.
• Reflect critically on their learning journey, integrating insights from self-assessments, peer input, and practical experiments into an evolving “career prototype.”
• Design and present a personal action plan and portfolio demonstrating a sustainable and adaptable career strategy informed by self-awareness and global citizenship.
• Demonstrate transversal skills such as adaptability, creativity, intercultural communication, and reflective decision-making applicable across professional contexts.
There are no formal academic prerequisites for this course. It is open to students from any discipline at the MA/MSc level (and advanced BA students where appropriate).
The course is particularly beneficial for students in the later stages of their studies, who are preparing for career decisions, seeking direction in their professional development, or planning international or interdisciplinary pathways.
As the learning process is highly experiential and reflective, participants are expected to commit actively to weekly participation, self-assessment exercises, and peer collaboration. Before the course begins, students complete a short pre-course reflection questionnaire to clarify their motivations, learning goals, and expectations. This helps tailor the group experience and ensures that all participants are ready to engage fully in the design process.
This course is based primarily on experiential and reflective learning, so there are no compulsory readings. Instead, students receive a curated list of recommended books from both academic and practitioner perspectives on career design, design thinking, transversal skills, and professional development. Participants are encouraged to select titles that best support their personal learning goals and challenges identified during the course. Guidance and optional discussion prompts will be provided for each thematic block.
Recommended literature:
1. Burnett, Bill, and Dave Evans. Designing Your Life: How to Build a Well-Lived, Joyful Life. New York: Knopf, 2016.
2. Newport, Cal. So Good They Can’t Ignore You: Why Skills Trump Passion in the Quest for Work You Love. New York: Business Plus, 2012.
3. Goleman, Daniel. Emotional Intelligence: Why It Can Matter More Than IQ. New York: Bantam Books, 1995.
4. Cain, Susan. Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can’t Stop Talking. New York: Crown, 2012.
5. Kouzes, James M., and Barry Z. Posner. The Leadership Challenge. 7th ed. Hoboken, NJ: Wiley, 2023.
6. Bolles, Richard N. What Color Is Your Parachute? A Practical Manual for Job-Hunters and Career-Changers. New York: Ten Speed Press, 2022.
7. Burkeman, Oliver. Four Thousand Weeks: Time Management for Mortals. New York: Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 2021.
8. Prince, Emma-Sue. The Advantage: The 7 Soft Skills You Need to Stay Ahead. Harlow: Pearson, 2025.
9. Roadtrip Nation. Roadmap: The Get-It-Together Guide for Figuring Out What to Do with Your Life. San Francisco: Chronicle Books, 2015.
10. Wheeler, Tarah. Women in Tech: Take Your Career to the Next Level with Practical Advice and Inspiring Stories. Berkeley, CA: Sasquatch Books, 2016.
11. Goodheart-Willcox Publisher. Soft Skills for the Workplace. Tinley Park, IL: Goodheart-Willcox, 2018.
12. Ryan, M. J. AdaptAbility: How to Survive Change You Didn’t Ask For. New York: Broadway Books, 2009.
The course is delivered through a combination of weekly online group sessions, individual reflection tasks, peer interaction, and practical experimentation. The learning design follows the career design methodology and design thinking pedagogy, encouraging students to learn by doing, reflecting, and iterating.
Weekly online sessions (12 weeks)
Each week features a live 90-minute online meeting on Teams, forming the backbone of the learning journey. Sessions combine short theoretical inputs with guided exercises, small-group discussions, and collective reflection (“mastermind” format). Students explore key topics such as values, strengths, creativity, and sustainable decision-making.
Preparatory and reflective assignments
Before the course begins, students complete short self-assessment and reflection tasks to explore their current career narratives and professional identity. Throughout the semester, they document insights, reframes, and learning points in an individual reflective journal or digital portfolio.
Group coaching and peer reflection
Students work in international small groups (3-4 members) to exchange experiences, practice coaching questions, and give each other structured feedback. The sessions are facilitated to ensure psychological safety and equal participation.
Thematic mini-workshops
Selected sessions focus on developing specific transversal skills such as creative problem-solving, emotional agility, intercultural communication, and resilience. These workshops introduce tools from behavioral design, positive psychology, and career management research.
Prototyping and real-life experimentation
In the second half of the course, learners design and carry out small “career experiments” (e.g., informational interviews, short projects, volunteering, or shadowing) to test ideas in practice. Results are shared and discussed in class, emphasizing reflection and iteration.
Knowledge base and online learning environment for materials and interactions.
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