Graduates of the UW–Madison School of Education are enjoying successful careers in fields across the arts, health, and education — and we are excited to share what they are doing today.
Following is a Q&A with Curtis Feldner, who graduated in 2022 with a BS in Educational Policy Studies.
How did you get interested in this field/major?
I originally enrolled at UW–Madison with the intention of becoming a high school French teacher, but I started to feel pretty ambivalent about both French and becoming a teacher within my first year. I thought about getting a certificate in the School of Education while exploring other majors and coursework, and ultimately ended up settling on Educational Policy Studies as a major because I enjoyed the coursework and wanted to keep education as the focus of my career, regardless of where I ended up. The interdisciplinary aspect of the coursework helped me feel prepared to jump into a wide range of careers or fields after graduation.
What are you doing today (professionally, or where are you pursuing further education)?
I was able to work in Student Academic Affairs at UW–Madison right after graduating, doing learning support and academic advising. This past September, I started at DePaul University working in their Office of International Admissions.
What class or professor had the greatest impact on you, and why?
Gen&WS 560: Gender and Education was the class where I felt the most challenged to develop my ideas and where I had the most nuanced and engaging discussions with my classmates. I remember leaving each discussion section with new revelations on gender, education, race, and economics learned from both the course readings and my peers’ own experiences. The professor, Kathryn Moeller, was extremely invested in my own personal background and scholarship during our individual meetings, and she led the course with immense care and love. I remember spending weeks writing my final paper because I was so invested in matching the effort the instructional staff were putting into preparing and facilitating the course. That paper ended up receiving the award for Outstanding Paper in Educational Studies in 2022, which felt like a tangible way to honor the impact the course had on me.
How, if at all, has the EPS program at UW–Madison helped you get to where you are today?
I feel like the program provided me with foundational knowledge to move into a variety of work related to education. Much of my coursework examined education as situated at the crossroads of various ideologies and institutions. I was able to secure internships related to urban planning due to my exposure to economics, public policy, and sociology during my degree. I was able to work in learning support during my undergraduate degree and after graduating, thanks to my exposure to pedagogical methods and theories of learning. As I was searching for jobs in higher education during my senior year, my career adviser reminded me that the same coursework other candidates are learning in their graduate degrees I was getting exposure to during my undergraduate degree. This made me feel confident about moving forward and making an impact in whatever position I ended up in.
Can you tell us about a time you connected with someone at the Career Center?
During my final semester, I connected with the Career Center multiple times to begin preparing for my job search. I had very few ideas about my post-graduation plans, so I relied on these meetings to make sense of where to focus my energy, how to find positions that matched my wants and experience, and what to include in my materials to be competitive. I feel like the biggest challenge with finding a job is burnout and lack of motivation, but having someone cheer me on and provide concrete next steps to accomplish my goals was extremely helpful. Job searching is one of the most unintuitive and complicated processes, and I owe my success in finding my previous and current position to the support from the School of Education Career Center.
Have you participated in any research, study abroad, or community service? What did you participate in and could you talk a bit more about those experiences?
I was able to participate in a scholarship program called the Korean Flagship Program that supported my study of the Korean language on UW–Madison’s campus and helped fund a year-long study abroad capstone at Korea University. One of the reasons Educational Policy Studies was such a perfect fit was because it allowed me to also pursue my Korean language coursework and study abroad without any conflicts. The time I spent abroad was extremely formative for me personally, academically, and professionally. Being immersed in the environment, my language skills skyrocketed and I made so many connections with local and international students. It also allowed me to make connections with the coursework I took in EPS in a very real way. My time living and working abroad has become a major asset now that I am working in international education.