The Compass is a welcoming community of Arts students, staff, faculty, and alumni that offers curated resources + student engagement and career programming to help you make the most of your Arts degree.
Compass programming is developed in consultation with Arts students like you. Whether you are looking for actionable steps to improve your wellbeing, tips to get the most of your time in Arts, or tools to prepare for life after graduation, Compass is here to improve your Arts experience.
Join the Arts Compass Canvas page to get access to exclusive resources and event information. The page has resources from all seven Compass Pathways, as well as helpful tools to help you navigate options to get involved on campus. Click the link below to join the Compass Canvas community!
View Compass Pathways
Arts Career Conversations
Preparing for life after university one conversation at a time
Between papers, projects, and exams, it can be hard to take a moment to think about life after university. As an Arts student – with skills transferrable across diverse industries and roles – it can be even harder to envision exactly what to do when you graduate.
Arts Career Conversations are designed to inspire and prepare Arts students like you to create fulfilling careers and lives. Each event in the 4-part series will highlight a different field or theme, and feature assorted Arts alumni who are keen to share their experiences and connect with current students to showcase the value of an Arts degree. Most Arts Career Conversations will be structured as a moderated panel discussion followed by open networking. Join your peers and alumni to engage in meaningful career conversations, build professional connections, and become more proactive in planning your path.
Arts Career Design Studio
This series teaches undergraduate Arts students across all year levels tools to design a meaningful path through their Arts degree and think about life after graduation. Develop skills to conduct an effective job search, practice telling your story verbally and in writing, and have the opportunity to meet with Arts alumni pursuing diverse careers. Students are strongly encouraged to participate in the full Studio program, and those who do so will be recognized with a document showing that they have completed an intensive professional development program.
Meet your Alumni in Residence
Arts alumni can offer you unique and valuable insight on how to bridge your academic learning with your future professional pathway. Connect with our alumni-in-residence for advice on kickstarting your career, building a professional network, and more.
Marion Benkaiouche, BA’14
Marion graduated with a BA in Political Science and a minor in International Relations with the ultimate goal of becoming a researcher. She currently works at KPMG Canada, where she focuses on community planning and policy research.
Upcoming Arts Career Design Studios
Arts Prof Talks
Meet and learn from faculty members from a range of departments who will share their expertise and advice with you through informal, authentic conversation. Come chat with us on topics such as the psychology of gaming, how to make the most of your time at UBC, how to bounce back after a low grade, and so much more.
Entrepreneurship for Arts Majors
Want to build your skill set to launch your own product or service? Curious about what self-employment could look like for you? Keen to find a mentor who could help you advance your idea?
This customized training for UBC Arts majors, offered in collaboration with entrepreneurship@UBC, offers you support to conceive, research, design, and prototype a start-up, agency, venture, project, product, or service, or to kick-start running your own initiative, business or not-for-profit society. Workshops and events in the Fall prepare you for the more intensive training in the Spring semester. Advanced registration for this training is required.
Meet your Alumni in Residence
Arts alumni can offer you valuable insight on how to bridge your academic interests with your entrepreneurial passions. Connect with our alumni-in-residence for one-on-one support and get advice on developing your ideas, building a professional network, and more.
Christina Morrow, BA’21
Christina is the founder of Wicked Rose, an innovative activewear brand for women in martial arts. Over the past two and a half years, Christina has learned the ins and outs of brand building, networking, and customer discovery, while navigating the Canadian startup community as a first-time solo founder.
Eric Franzo, MAPP’12
Eric holds a Master’s in Asian Pacific Policy Studies with a focus on human rights. He is the founder of Purposely, a platform that helps companies build strong team culture through employee volunteering activities and The Tea Drawer, an online tea company that sells Yaupon, the only caffeinated tea that grows natively in North America.
Upcoming Entrepreneurship for Arts Majors Events
Top Insider Tips for Arts Students
Learn from Arts faculty and staff members about ways to help finance your degree, get involved, and more.
Wellbeing Workshops
Student life can be challenging. Classes, exams, friendship and family drama can all pile up and lead to feelings of anxiety and stress. The good news is there are healthy habits you can learn and practice that will allow you to better navigate difficulties and even thrive throughout the semester and beyond. At each workshop, you will have the opportunity to connect with other students as you learn helpful tips and skills to bring more balance into your life. Facilitated by Arts Embedded Counsellor Laura Harvey.
Partner Events
Discover a curated list of helpful workshops, exciting events, and more from partners in the Faculty of Arts and across UBC.
Graduate Student & Postdoctoral Fellow Public Engagement & Professional Development
The Arts Amplifier is designed to help UBC Arts graduate students and postdoctoral fellows turn their ideas and projects into meaningful work experiences. We want you to leverage your networks and co-develop with off-campus partners your own paid work and professional development experiences. Our goal is to help you to tap into the hidden job market, using networking and collaboration to design projects tailored to you, specifically. Join us to meet with peers, alumni, employers, and community organizers, to spark new ideas, catalyze your existing ones, foster community and connections, and collaborate on meaningful public engagement projects.
