You may have heard us throw around the terminology “life design” a bunch. But apart from a fun-sounding practice, what does it entail? When Farouk Dey, our Vice Provost of Integrative Learning and Life Design arrived at JHU in 2018, he dramatically transformed the way our career centers approach career planning and brought in this philosophy.

What life design isn’t:

Let’s start with the traditional career planning model: students decide what they want to do their first year and then focus on that for the entire duration of their time in university, hoping that they will continue to like it during their first job.

So then, what is life design

Life design is an approach that favors students proactively exploring threads of what interests them through mentorship and immersive experiences early on in their careers and iterating to get to a clearer vision over time. Life design is a proactive approach.

Why life design?

Students who engage in life design understand “the importance of taking risks, of persistence, of pursuing curiosity, and of being prepared for chance events that … bring opportunities.” (1) Trying new experiences, like internships and other experiential learning opportunities, is at the
center of a life design approach. This ultimately leads to young adults who know themselves and their interests, and therefore are better prepared for their careers.

How does a life-design prepared student help employers?

Individuals with a life design approach are more likely to bring these critical skills to their workplace. (2)

1. Complex problem solving
2. Critical thinking
3. Creativity
4. People management
5. Coordinating with others
6. Emotional intelligence
7. Judgement and decision making
8. Service orientation
9. Negotiation
10. Cognitive flexibility
    

(1) https://hub.jhu.edu/2018/10/19/farouk-dey-success-skills/
(2) https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/five-future-directions-universitycareer-services-farouk-dey/