Relevant. Real-World. Right Now.
Nearly every graduate entering the job market encounters a simple yet harsh reality: a college degree is good, but a degree and experience are better. That is why Elms College created its Dolores Donlin Noonan ’39 Experiential Learning Program. It allows you to go beyond the classroom and gain the kind of real-world experience that employers value. This will help your resume rise to the top of all the others.
Experiential Learning is about more than finding a job. It is also a way for you to develop new skills and interests, to find abilities and capabilities you may not have known you possessed. It’s about being a team player and being a part of something, from the drafting of an idea to the implementation of a final design. It’s about forging lifelong connections with mentors, and about expanding the width and breadth of your knowledge. And Elms faculty and staff are there to help you find the right internship, and to offer advice, support and guidance at each step of the way. Learn more about our Experiential Learning program and internships, research experiences, study abroad, and service learning.
Forge Your Own Path
Elms shows you the tools to navigate a complex world, and to expand your understanding along the way. By the time you graduate, you’ll have had many opportunities to apply your ideas, dedication, and desires to real-life issues, and experience first-hand a career path that best fits your interests.
Go Interdisciplinary
The best solutions are those that draw on multiple disciplines, theories, and concepts. So what happens when you combine computer science with business? Or nursing and psychology? Or history and criminal justice? Crossing rigid academic boundaries helps you gain knowledge in an expansive way. It helps you to be more creative, look beyond the easy answers, and ready and able to tackle whatever life sends your way.
Get Funding
Elms offers generous financial resources specifically geared toward supporting unpaid internships, research, study abroad, and mission trip experiences. Learn more.
Do Something Groundbreaking.
Innovative Cancer Research
Mariah Dudash ’20 completed an internship at the Pioneer Valley Life Sciences Institute over the summer, running experiments on cell immunity.
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Debunking Stigmas of Hearing Aids
Communication Sciences and Disorders major Jill Coulter ’20 collaborated with a professor on campus to measure implicit biases against hearing devices.
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Pack Your Passport
Through a long-standing partnership with the University of Kochi in Japan, Elms College offers students the chance to go on a three-week immersion trip to Asia over the summer. You’ll participate in traditional Japanese customs, visit breathtaking scenery, make new friends, and gain knowledge outside of the classroom.
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Spark Social Justice
Every spring, Elms students who are passionate about social change travel to different areas on service learning trips. These treks emphasize community building and service to others, and offer a first-hand look at how you can lend a hand to our “dear neighbor.”
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Innovative Cancer Research
Debunking Stigmas of Hearing Aids
Pack Your Passport
Spark Social Justice
Learn more about Experiential Learning at Elms College from Jennifer L. Granger Sullivan, Ed.D., Director of Experiential Learning, Co-Director of the First Year Seminar.
Add to Your Resume Now, Not Later.
Volunteer work, international travel, on-campus leadership, and exploratory internships are all invaluable experiences to add to your professional resume. By the time you graduate from Elms, you’ll have a diverse set of bullet points highlighting the different ways you expanded on your education. Not sure where to start? Our Office of Career Services can help.
Get Started Your First Year at Elms.
As part of your First Year Seminar experience, you’ll get a taste of what experiential learning is all about your very first year at Elms. The Elms Innovation Challenge is a dynamic, round-the-clock workshop that invites students to develop creative solutions to social issues.
Experiential Learning Showcase
Attend this year’s showcase!
May 1st, 2026 – Learn MoreExperiential learning connects classroom knowledge with real-world impact. Watch a recent event held in the Alumnae Library to see experiential learning in action.
View The Spring 2025 Experiential Learning Showcase Events
The event had poster sessions, presentation, simulations, videos, student art exhibition, poetry reading, and more that showcase individual, small group, or class presentations on the topics of research and internship (including KSF, EAIE, and Dolores Donlin Noonan ’39 scholarship recipients), Community Work Study, Missions Trips, Study Abroad, Community Service, and CEXPL (courses). The day was also a celebration, a chance to see applied learning in action, meet with students and community partners, and enjoy some refreshments together.
This event was open to all Elms community members, community partners, family, alums, etc.
Questions? Contact Jennifer Granger Sullivan, Ed.D.
at grangersullivanj@elms.edu | 413-265-2233
Meet the Staff of Experimental Learning
Jennifer L. Granger Sullivan, Ed.D. is the Director of Experiential Learning at Elms College, where she has been working to coordinate, expand and enhance opportunities for community engagement since Fall 2021. Jennifer is also a Visiting Assistant Professor at Salem State University, teaching in their Higher Education in Student Affairs graduate program.
Read More
Students / Faculty / Staff – For more details and resources find the Office of Experiential Learning on ElmsConnect.
Elms College thanks and acknowledges the Davis Educational Foundation for their support. The Office of Experiential Learning is able to incorporate experiential high-impact learning into the curriculum at Elms because of the support of the Davis Educational Foundation grant. We are proud to be helping our students be real world ready and successful through experiential learning both inside and outside the classroom.