WHAT IS NEXUS?
Nexus is a network of individuals with BAs in Classics who have gone on to careers in fields outside of academia. In addition to connecting its members to each other based on their shared interest, it serves as a resource for current Classics majors, who can contact Nexus members for advice and opportunities as they look ahead to their post-college careers.
WHY NEXUS?
Our goals for Nexus are twofold: First, Nexus will connect its members to each other, creating a nationwide network of professionals who share a love of the Ancient World. Few resources currently exist for classicists to continue their studies after leaving academia. Through Nexus, we hope to provide former Classics majors with opportunities to engage with the literatures they love, by connecting them to other classicists in their area and inviting them to Paideia-curated events: Nexus members will have access to webinars, meetups, online classes, trips, lectures, and more.
Second, by creating a network of working professionals with BAs in Classics, we hope to push back against one of the most pernicious myths about humanities majors, namely that they are unprepared to compete in today’s job market. As the cost of undergraduate education balloons, more and more students feel pressured to treat their college years as vocational preparation: the perception that humanistic fields offer few applicable skills leads many students to avoid them, as they worry about how they will pay down their looming college loans.
In fact, our own research shows that Classics majors go on to success in a variety of fields, from education, law, policy, and journalism to finance, business, and technology. Nexus will be available as a resource for current and recent Classics majors trying to begin their post-academic careers; by putting students in touch with successful professionals who also studied Classics, we can show them that they can pursue their intellectual passions without harming their future prospects.
Distribution of Classics majors' post-college careers by field; based on research conducted during
our 2018 Summer Humanities Internship
GET INVOLVED
To learn more about Nexus and the many other projects of the Paideia Institute, we invite you to join us for a free meetup in Manhattan on Thursday, December 13 at the Citco Gateway (350 Park Avenue, 13th Floor), from 6:00 to 8:00 PM. RSVP by clicking the button below and bring your classicist friends!