Course Topics
The seminar sets out to introduce students to strategies and approaches to planning, writing and editing their future internship, job, grant and postgraduate degree applications in professionally and academically relevant contexts. The seminar will thus focus on the written documents required as part of an application, such as CVs, resumés, cover letters, project proposals, and application forms. There will be a focus on planning oral interviews and fostering students’ communication skills in professional contexts, and on strategies for optimising personal growth and wellbeing while pursuing one’s professional objectives. The interactive seminar requires active student participation in a range of modalities, and may include frontal lectures and presentations by guests if feasible/appropriate.

Propaedeutic courses
none

Teaching format
Seminar modalities and principles The seminar teaching/learning modalities stem from sociocultural principles entailing interactive lectures supported by a wide range of programme-relevant input, and individual, pair and group work activities, to include active/creative modes of presentation by students (individually/in pairs/in groups) and lecturer alike. Students’ development is fostered through written and spoken lecturer input and feedback during lectures/tutorials (office hours). Such tutorials are provided in-presence as well as remotely (Teams) if appropriate. Students who require additional assistance are welcome to discuss their needs and relevant development pathways with the course lecturer at all times.

Educational objectives
Disciplinary competence By the end of the seminar, students will be able to: - read critically a call for applications (we will consider job, university, grant and internship applications and project proposals); - assess their profiles’ suitability for specific applications; - structure knowledges and experiences in cover letters; - develop a project proposal and structure it in their writings; - consider organizational aspects in setting up their own independent practice; - prepare for interviews. Knowledge and understanding The students will have acquired: - the basic knowledge necessary for writing a clear project proposal for a grant application in the field of design, visual arts, or the cultural sector at large; - the basic knowledge to orientate themselves in the art, design and cultural scene in Italy and abroad and to look for opportunities. Ability to apply knowledge and understanding Students will be able to: - present their work in written form; - develop their written project proposals in the field of design, visual arts, and culture at large; - critically assess and edit their written applications, cover letters and project proposals. Transversal skills /soft skills Autonomy of judgment The students will have developed: - a good autonomy of judgement aimed at developing one's own capacity and the set of decisions necessary to carry out an application and/or a project proposal to its conclusion; - a good autonomy of judgement in the critical evaluation of their work and in their ability to use correct interpretative methods in relation to the contexts in which they intend to apply for an internship, a job, a grant, or course of study. Communication skills Students will be able to: - present their own work orally and in written form at a professional level; - communicate and motivate the reasons for their choices and motivate them from a formal, technical, scientific and theoretical point of view. Learning skills Students will learn to: - autonomously write well-structured, coherent and relevant application materials and project proposals.

Assessment
Formative Assessment Individual participants’ development is formatively assessed on the basis of coursework, active autonomous and collaborative engagement, projects and tasks, and on the basis of the participants’ incorporation of lecturer written and spoken feedback in their ongoing written and oral work. Weighting: 30%. Summative Assessment Each individual student’s participation in the Seminar is summatively assessed through the submission of a compilation of student-written texts, previously informed and supported by lecturer suggestions, input, and feedback, and through a brief oral presentation, culminating in a joint oral discussion of each student’s work. Weighting - portfolio of written documents: 30%. Weighting - oral presentations: 40%.

Evaluation criteria
Individual students’ participation in the seminar and linked learning outcomes are evaluated on a pass or fail basis. Evaluation criteria: - Active participation in course learning activities - Producing course/context-relevant written documents - Participating in brief course/context-relevant oral presentations/interview simulations - Benefiting from lecturer feedback in own written and oral work - Demonstrating an awareness of context-relevant documentation formats, and of linguistic/communicative issues regarding English as an international language in written and oral domains.