In this Guide
Learn the many ways you can extend your classroom experience to the real world.
- Take required Cultural Studies courses and explore other programs of interest.
- Enhance your academic experience at Laurier through professional one-on-one, online and peer-to-peer resources available through Academic Advising and Support.
- Join professional associations such as the Canadian Association of Cultural Studies as a student member.
- If you’re thinking about applying to graduate school, talk with your professors and visit the Career Centre.
- Work with faculty members on grant-funded projects.
- Learn about research opportunities available to you with faculty members.
- Participate in the Canadian Association of Cultural Studies conference.
- If you’re applying to graduate school, sign up for a scholarship proposal writing workshop and book a further education application appointment.
As a Cultural Studies student, you can:
- Join one of many culturally focused student clubs and build leadership skills through joining an executive team.
- Celebrate cultural richness with the CultureXchange club.
- Volunteer as an International Student Leader or help support the Multicultural Gala (jdesmond@wlu.ca)
- Join professional associations such as the Canadian Association of Cultural Studies as a student member.
Outside of your program, there are many co-curricular opportunities for you to participate in.
- Check out the Experience Catalogue for a full list of co-curricular experiences that are currently offered across campus.
- Volunteer with the Students’ Union (e.g., Laurier Orientation, Hawk Walk, EcoHawks, Food Bank, Emergency Response Team, Shinerama).
- Volunteer on campus with the Accessible Learning, Global Engagement, Sustainability Office, Centre for Student Equity, Diversity and Inclusion, WLU Student Publications and more.
- Get involved in the local community by volunteering off campus.
- Apply for on-campus jobs:
- Check Navigator frequently for job postings or contact individual departments directly.
- Search for job opportunities on the Students’ Union website.
- If you meet eligibility criteria, apply for the Laurier Work Study Program or International Student Work Experience Program.
- Attend Job Fairs to network with employers.
- Explore ways to get involved in research.
- Look into StartUp Lab opportunities for support in launching a new venture.
Job/Volunteer Search Tips
- While on-campus opportunities are posted year-round, recruitment often starts early! Start looking in the winter term for opportunities in the following academic year.
- Have your resumé and LinkedIn profile reviewed by Career Centre staff for both on and off-campus opportunities.
- Laurier offers a variety of co-curricular certificates that you can complete during your studies. Earn certificates in topics including academic development, professional development, wellness, leadership and career development.
- Participate in workshops, programming and events offered by the Career Centre, Gendered and Sexual Violence Prevention and Support, Laurier Library, the Centre for Student Equity, Diversity and Inclusion and more.
- Engage in the First-Year Leadership Program including Campus Councils and House Council and the Leadership Certificate.
- Connect with Global Engagement to learn about international options available to you including opportunities abroad and language and culture sharing programs.
Design Your Degree
These are a few popular academic opportunities which allow you to dive deeper into your major area of study or broaden your knowledge. See undergraduate options, minors and courses for more information.
Develop Your Knowledge and Skills
As a Laurier student, you will develop the following competencies through your curricular and co-curricular experiences.
Competency Framework
Competencies are categories of transferrable skills that appear on your online Experience Record to help you reflect on what you've learned from your experiences. The competencies include:
- Adaptability and Resiliency
- Collaboration and Teamwork
- Communication
- Creativity and Innovation
- Critical Thinking
- Digital Literacy
- Diversity and Intercultural Understanding
- Functional Knowledge
- Leadership
- Problem Solving
- Professional Attributes
- Self-Awareness
Functional Knowledge
You will develop functional knowledge in your program including:
- Familiarity with interdisciplinary approaches to understanding how culture is formed, practiced, and constituted.
- Engagement with cultural studies as a disciplinary debate, particularly in terms of how culture is understood in the context of identity formations and systems of power generated around concepts of race, gender, sexuality, class, ethnicity, and forces of globalization.
- Development of a critical awareness of the institutional and social structures that circumscribe forms of cultural production.
- Understand all forms of cultural production, including popular culture, as sites of ideological production which can be 'unpacked' utilizing a variety of tools.
- The ability to perform a close reading of any cultural ‘text’ (including visual culture, sound and music, forms of popular culture, etc.) in order to examine the underpinning of ideological structures.
- Learn new ways of ‘reading’ the culture all around you, exploring popular music, visual culture, the culture of work and play, youth subculture and popular culture’s role in social change.
Discover Career Options
All your experiences at Laurier can help you prepare for your future. Attend Career Centre events and workshops or book a career consulting appointment to explore career and further education options.
0
Pursuing Further Education
0
Employed
0
Other
137 Communications and Cultural Studies respondents from the 2024 Laurier Graduate Survey conducted by the Career Centre. Graduates were surveyed within 12 months of graduation. Other includes those travelling, volunteering or out of the workforce. 4% of graduates were looking for employment when survey data collection ended.
Alumni Careers and Pathways
Sample Further Education Programs Within the First Year After Graduation
- Master’s Degree – Cultural Analysis & Social Theory, Globalization
- College Program – Public Relations
Sample Jobs Within the First Year After Graduation
- administrative assistant
- advertising and marketing coordinator
- bilingual mortgage fulfillment officer
- court and client representative
- editor
- marketing and social media specialist
- production assistant
Careers Of Alumni Two to Five Years After Graduation
- artifact conservator
- communications coordinator
- community support worker
- events and media coordinator
- government services coordinator
- human rights specialist
- librarian
- program support officer
- public relations manager
- writer/editor
Career Options and Resources
Need some guidance on what you can do with your degree? Discover some career options and find resources to help guide you.
Career and Industry Options
- business/corporate development
- communications/public relations
- cultural heritage/tourism
- cultural research analysis
- digital media/social media
- education/teaching
- finance/insurance
- human resources
- immigration
- international relations
- journalism/media
- law/legal field
- library/archives/museum
- negotiation and dispute resolution
- non-profit/advocacy
- refugee settlement and support
- social policy
- urban planning/development
Your Experiences Tell Your Story
Share your story through your Laurier Experience Record. An interactive, shareable and official record of your hands-on experiences and learning opportunities at Laurier – the first of its kind in Canada!
Share Your Feedback
We'd love to hear from you. Complete the Laurier Experience Guide Feedback Survey to share your thoughts.