“The classes I took at The Philadelphia Center were amazing! Mark encourages students to analyze and really see aspects of power and authority and how it plays out in the work environment. My Elective, Warren Huff’s Architecture of Cities, helped me to appreciate, notice and understand what I see every day in the historic city of Philadelphia. In other words, Mark helped me see the unseen and Warren helped me appreciate what I do see.”
Kay Miller, Hope College
Spring 2006
Metropolitan Career Center, Human Resources Intern
Summer Program for Graduates
The Philadelphia Center’s 8-Week Summer Program for Recent Graduates
What Is It?
An 8-week internship and seminar experience that gives recent graduates a substantial and meaningful opportunity to learn the dynamics of work and discover something about their personal and professional direction in life as they begin their professional careers. Led by TPC’s Summer Program Director, Dr. Mark Andrew Clark.
Mentored Internships—Students work at least 32 hours per week (4 to 4 ½ days a week) in an internship opportunity they choose and create individualized learning plans of action based on what they wish to achieve and learn while participating in the program. The program director and workplace supervisor help facilitate and evaluate the learning. Students interested in working in the following fields are strongly encouraged to apply early: advertising, investment banking, law, medicine, physical sciences, public relations, publishing, and sports. Summer internships are highly competitive in these fields. Please Note: Internships are NOT paid, since the focus of the work experience is on learning.
Seminar—All post-graduate students are required to take the following seminar, which meets once a week in the morning or afternoon. The seminar integrates the learning in the internship and helps graduates make the most out of their TPC summer program experience.
Transitioning to Professional Life: Approaches to Work and Working: When students graduate college and begin to enter the professional world, the transition can be monumental. A major problem many graduates face from liberal arts institutions is how to approach this process of transition. Often, graduates start their planning from a discipline/field perspective (communications, psychology, economics); an organizational perspective (IBM, 76ers, Merrill Lynch); or a positional perspective (publicist, social worker, analyst). But there are alternative approaches, like a topic perspective (environment, health insurance, child welfare) or a skills/abilities perspective (researching, editing, analyzing, facilitating, designing websites, etc.). To begin this transition to the workplace, graduates need to know, understand, and articulate the training they have received from their college education, as well as the skills and abilities they have acquired from all the contexts of their prior learning. Students’ ways of thinking, writing, reading, planning, organizing, evaluating, etc. are more marketable than they often realize when they begin their search for work. This course will help recent graduates develop approaches, methods, and plans of action to begin their professional careers.
Urban Experience—Students will be able to explore one of the nation’s most historic locations. Philadelphia is a city of neighborhoods and offers participants a chance to experience a wide variety of interests from the Atwater Kent Museum to the Zoological Gardens. For more detailed information about living in Philadelphia, please click here.
Who Can Attend?
Recent graduates across all majors and who are ready to learn and experience work.
What are the dates of the program?
Visit the TPC Calendar page for the start and end dates to our programs.
Will I Receive College Credit?
Yes. Hope College in Holland, Michigan is our managing institution. Upon completion of the 8-week program, Hope College will award post-graduates with 3 academic credits.
How Much Is Tuition?
For graduates, the cost is $1,450, plus a $500 non-refundable application fee. Students must contract to enroll in the seminar as a part of their overall summer program experience.
Why Is the Application Fee Non-Refundable?
The $500 application fee must accompany your application. For students that apply prior to December 31, the application fee is $250. For applications received after December 31 the application fee is $500. As soon as a student submits the application and deposit, The Philadelphia Center begins its work. Dr. Mark Clark, the program director, will consult with the student directly via phone and email. Doing so allows Dr. Clark to better understand the student’s interests and objectives related to participating in the summer program. TPC will then help arrange phone interviews at placements of interest to each student. Please note: The $500 application fee, payable to The Philadelphia Center, must accompany your application.
What Is the Tuition Payment Schedule?
Hope College, our managing institution, will mail each student participating in the summer program a bill sometime in April.
What about Housing and Food Costs?
TPC rents an apartment dormitory on the campus of the University of Pennsylvania where participants live with other students in the program. The cost for this housing component is $2,500. Students also have the option of making their own living arrangements. Costs such as food, entertainment, and others expenses are not included so students should budget accordingly. Hope College will mail each student that has opted to use summer housing a bill sometime in April.
If a student lives locally may he/she live at home and participate in the program?
Yes, of course.
Where Can I Download an Application for The Philadelphia Center’s Summer Program: Learning Work for recent graduates?
Please click here to download a PDF of our application.
How Can I Contact The Philadelphia Center?
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