The power of intentional experience
Understanding the strategy behind Beyond120
Experiential learning is transforming the way students prepare for life beyond the classroom. According to the National Association of Colleges and Employers, students who participated in experiential learning reported more rapid career advancement and greater job satisfaction than their peers who did not engage in such opportunities. Through internships, research, global programs and community-engaged learning, students gain real-world experience that deepens their education and sharpens their career readiness.
Beyond120, the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences’ (CLAS) signature experiential learning program, bridges the gap between theory and practice to support students with building the skills, confidence and connections essential for meaningful careers and fulfilling lives. “What sets CLAS’s approach to experiential learning apart is intentionality,” said Taylor Stokes, director of the Beyond120 program.
Rooted in the idea of learning through doing, experiential learning actively engages students in experiences that connect academic concepts with lived practice. It begins with action: Students step into environments that challenge or inspire them, sparking curiosity and personal investment. Through guided reflection, they begin to make sense of these experiences, exploring their thoughts, emotions and ideas. This process helps clarify values, deepen understanding and raise thoughtful questions — such as why did this matter and what can I take away from it? Ultimately, students are encouraged to connect the dots to their academic learning by using their insights to inform future choices, solve problems and build new skills. This intentional cycle of experience, reflection, analysis and application transforms everyday moments into lasting learning opportunities.
“Ultimately, how much you benefit relies on having reflection and application intentionally built in as a part of your learning experiences,” Stokes said.
Laying the groundwork
The idea for Beyond120 formed as a response to a post-graduation survey taken in 2015. It found that 38% of CLAS students had participated in an internship, a rate much lower than other UF colleges at that time. Former CLAS Dean David Richardson took these results to heart and together with Joe Spillane, former associate dean for student affairs, drafted a concept that became Beyond120.
“CLAS students needed us to complement traditional university career services by addressing our students’ unique interests and career aspirations via their major departments and in a centralized college program,” Richardson said.
Recognizing that many undergraduate students transition directly into the workforce, Richardson wanted a program that made learning about the “world of work” a forefront goal.
“College should be, foremost, a student-focused enterprise that cares as much about the four years after a student’s graduation as we do about their time at UF,” Richardson said. “In talking with faculty and students, it became clear that we should do all that we could to help students seek opportunities to get important skills and workplace experiences.”
“Our approach from the beginning has been to experiment and try new things to benefit our students, even if they don’t work out the first time,” said Brittany Grubbs-Hodges, senior lecturer and assistant director of curriculum innovation and co-curricular learning for Beyond120.
Today, Beyond120 provides students with career-tailored experiences, but now with a much larger scope. By giving students access to excursions, professional mentorships, scholar programs and career-oriented curriculum, Beyond120 prides itself on offering multidisciplinary activities that can benefit all CLAS students, from physics majors to English majors.
The experience gambit
Beyond120 excursions are immersive, career-focused experiences that extend learning beyond the classroom and even Gainesville. These curated trips introduce undergraduates to diverse industries and professional pathways. Through site visits, alumni engagement and networking opportunities, students gain valuable insights into potential careers while building connections that support their academic and professional growth.
The program’s first excursion occurred in 2017 when Darin Cook, a 1987 statistics alumnus, learned about Beyond120 and invited a group of students to visit his company, Infinite Energy.
“I was introduced to Beyond120 during a Gator100 celebration, as Infinite Energy had just made the list for the first time,” Cook said. “The program was still relatively new, but I could tell immediately that this was something special. I’ve been giving guest lectures and mentoring students ever since; I made my share of mistakes as a student and want to help them avoid those pitfalls.”
Excursions are offered in a variety of formats — from single-day local trips to multi-day experiences both within and beyond the state — designed to enrich student learning while accommodating diverse schedules and commitments. With limited space and strong demand, gaining a place on an excursion is often a competitive process, and it is important for students to approach these experiences with the same intentionality required to get the most out of other Beyond120 opportunities.
Many smaller-scale excursion opportunities are built into Beyond120’s curriculum, such as site visits to Gainesville-area businesses including Infotech and the Cade Museum for Creativity and Invention.
In January, CLAS students visited the Clearwater Marine Aquarium. This trip was a collaborative effort between Beyond120, the Archie Carr Center for Sea Turtle Research, and alumni and employer partners at the aquarium. This relationship has yielded not just this excursion opportunity, but also two internship positions exclusive to UF students for summer 2025. Students received a behind-the-scenes look at how to care for marine animals in captivity. They met and connected with marine biologists and aquarium staff and attended a panel on conservation efforts from industry experts. To appeal to a range of majors and potential career paths, students also learned the ins and outs of managing nonprofits and human resources.
One of the most popular annual excursions is a weeklong trip to Atlanta each spring, where students gain exposure to Fortune 500 and Fortune 1000 companies. While the list of companies changes from year to year, this past spring break, students visited Gas South, Genuine Parts Company/NAPA Auto Parts, Delta Airlines and AT&T. Undergraduates participated in a variety of professional development activities such as an alumni networking reception, mock interviews, guest lectures and one-on-one meetings with industry professionals for resume-building advice and mentoring. Students also explored the city visiting the World of Coca-Cola, Centennial Park and the Truist Park baseball stadium.
“With excursions like Atlanta, we try to get students used to what life looks like after college,” Stokes said. “It’s not just helping them get a job but also teaching them what it’s like to live in a big city, what it’s like to commute, how to find an apartment and how to network with other professionals. Each excursion is grounded in learning outcomes focused on professional development, skill building and values clarification. We’re helping students build the confidence and strategies they need for lifelong success.”
Beyond120 also works with departments and centers across the college to offer research opportunities for students looking for firsthand experience, like CLAS University Scholars and Emerging Scholars. Some of these research opportunities also allow for travel, like the Michelin Science Scholars program, which sends chemistry students to South Carolina each year to work directly with professionals at the Michelin Group.
For those interested in tapping into the program’s vast international network, there are eight programs that offer internships, shadowing and research experiences, from Singapore to Mexico. The wide range of excursion opportunities offered by Beyond120 ensures that there is something for everyone, whether they wish to travel across town or across the world.
Students on pre-health or pre-law tracks have access to additional resources tailored to support their specific academic and professional goals. For those seeking a career in the health care field, the Pre-Health Scholars program offers various development classes along with health-focused research and internship opportunities. Eligible pre-health students can also apply for the Morse Scholars program, founded by Joe Morse, a 1995 economics alumnus. The initiative prepares students for careers in medicine by offering financial support, personalized advising and test preparation. Morse Scholars also prioritizes placement on health-related excursions and additional one-on-one time with mentors and industry professionals.
“My goal with this program is to help pre-health students make the most out of their free time,” Morse said. “There wasn’t anything like this available when I was a student, so I had to learn how to do that myself.”
Moves that matter
In the seven years since the program launched, about 8,000 students have participated in Beyond120 experiences. CLAS alumna Alyssa Morford was one of those students. In 2018, Morford was attending a CLAS involvement fair when she first heard the name Beyond120. As a political science major with minors in philosophy and Arabic language, literature and culture, she was drawn to the program’s “college is more than just your 120 credit hours” approach, and she signed up. That decision ended up opening many doors for her, including internal experiences with the program and an internship with one of Beyond120’s industry partners during her third year.
Morford’s most meaningful experience in the program stemmed from connecting with a guest speaker: Domonique Worship, a 2011 Spanish and political science alumna and Harvard Law graduate. Moved by Worship’s message, Morford approached her afterward and requested a one-on-one mentorship session. That intentional step sparked a series of conversations that ultimately inspired Morford to establish a women’s support group at her own company. Years later, with equal purpose, she invited Worship to speak to the group, bringing their connection full circle through the community Morford had built.
“There is no reason not to join Beyond120,” Morford explained. “It will give you awareness of opportunities and events that you otherwise wouldn’t have known about. There is nothing to lose by giving it a try, only experiences to gain.”
Danny Cen, a third-year political science major, was among the group of students who attended 2025’s spring excursion to Atlanta. He was brand new to Beyond120, having switched to CLAS at the start of the previous fall semester, but after spending two months experiencing what the program offers, he believes that getting involved with Beyond120 was the best decision he has made at UF.
“Beyond120 does a superb job at making sure we know about every and any opportunity whether it’s an internship, campus event or excursion that fits all kinds of audiences,” Cen said.
It was in Atlanta that Cen learned the true value of Beyond120: facilitating professional networking and creating new connections. While in a mock interview at Gas South, the largest retail natural gas company in the southeastern U.S., Cen made a connection with one of the company’s human resources professionals. He said that the low-pressure environment helped him open up, and the two found themselves talking about life and their careers long after she had helped him finish his resume.
“During the trip, so many alumni told us they wished this program had existed when they were at UF,” Cen explained. “That alone says a lot about the impact it has.”
Fifth-year international studies and political science double major Mikhail Mikhaylov also attended the Atlanta trip with Cen, first learning about Beyond120 through its Introduction to Research course. He had already been on four excursions with the program, so Mikhaylov knew what to expect and how to get the most out of the experience.
“Beyond120 offers more than just programming,” Mikhaylov said. “It offers direction. It provides students with an incredible launchpad — what I would describe as a safe space to embrace discomfort, explore the unknown, and push beyond academic boundaries.”
Strategy at work
Beyond120’s unique structure intentionally builds in heavy involvement with alumni and business partners around the country. Only through the generous support of alumni, Stokes said, could a program like Beyond120 be sustained.
Christina Mattern, the program’s partnership and employer engagement specialist, is a first point of contact for any alumni looking to get involved with the program. She helps ensure that potential collaborators make an impact, whether it be through planning excursions, establishing shadowing or internship opportunities, or connecting with students as mentors. The expertise and insight alumni offer in their respective fields are invaluable to students, and Mattern’s priority is fostering the right connections to ensure students benefit from these rich resources.
For a more one-on-one approach, Beyond120 utilizes the University Gator Network platform. This mentorship resource connects students directly with alumni currently working in their potential field of interest, fostering mutually beneficial relationships.
“Alumni and industry mentors are critical to the student’s learning and development,” Stokes said. “Mentors can share valuable insight, recommend jobs and internships and help establish professional connections.” The Gator Network provides a direct channel for alumni to gain access to communities and connections.
While mentorships, excursions and internships open doors for students, they also allow prospective employers a glimpse at a potential new hire. On average, it costs a U.S. business $4,700 to successfully recruit and hire a new employee. With involvement in programs like Beyond120, organizations have access to a proven candidate pool.
In recent years, the Federal Bureau of Investigation found multiple new recruits thanks to the efforts of Agent Carlos Colon, a 1998 criminology graduate. Colon has hosted regular trips to FBI offices in Tampa. His efforts were recognized last year when he was honored as the 2024 CLAS Volunteer of the Year.
“What makes this program special is how it directly benefits everyone involved,” Stokes explained. “It is a direct benefit to our students, to alumni, our industry partners and our faculty.”
Success in experiential learning begins with intentionality. Simply going through the motions offers little lasting value; true growth comes from purposeful engagement. At the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, no program embodies this philosophy more fully than Beyond120, guiding students through a transformative process of learning by doing.
Surprising syllabi
Beyond120’s curriculum has expanded to include more than a dozen classes designed to develop students’ professional skills and prepare them to enter the workforce.
The Art of Adulting 101
Adulting is hard. Filing taxes, managing a budget and juggling personal and professional time can be overwhelming. The Art of Adulting fills those gaps, exposing students to life skills before they are thrown into the fire, post-graduation. This one-credit course, taught by Taylor Stokes, covers topics that students need to become not just scholars and employees, but well-rounded adults. In true Beyond120 fashion, this course covers time management skills, financial responsibility and career development. It also facilitates discussions on what it really means to be an adult.
Industry Insights
“Shark Tank” for the Health Care Industry, Entrepreneurship in Gainesville and Deconstructing the Fundamentals of Sales — all epigraphs for Beyond120’s Industry Insights class. Taught by Brittany Grubbs-Hodges, the course teaches the behind-the-scenes details that go into various careers. Each semester the class looks completely different, with a new alum joining Grubbs-Hodges as a guest lecturer providing insights for students to enrich their overall understanding of a given field beyond the traditional educational curriculum.
Learn more about mentorship with Beyond120 here.
