The “Career Development Workshop 2025”, organized by the Department of English Language Teaching at Bolu Abant İzzet Baysal University Faculty of Education, was successfully held on October 15, 2025, at the BAİBÜ Cultural Center Pink Hall. The event aimed to enhance students’ career awareness, share real experiences related to academic development processes, and strengthen interactive mentoring practices through out-of-class experiential learning environments.

The program featured the following presentations:

• Dr. Sedat Akayoğlu: “Career Steps in Academia”
• Dr. Seda Coşar-Çelik: “An Interdisciplinary Career Plan: Opportunities and Risks”
• Dr. Anıl Rakıcıoğlu-Söylemez: “Introduction to Career Management: Preparing a CV”
• Esra Spahi (PhD Candidate): “From Undergraduate to Doctorate: An Academic Journey”

Participant feedback highlighted that the workshop was “detailed, informative, and highly instructive.” Students stated that hearing about the instructors’ own academic journeys was highly motivating and that the event provided not only information but also a mentoring-based learning experience. At the end of the event, students suggested including topics such as study-abroad opportunities, alumni experiences, academic progression, and the impact of technological innovations (e.g., artificial intelligence) on the teaching profession in future workshops. The department aims to make such mentoring-based learning practices sustainable, thereby strengthening its vision of holistic career development in the field of English Language Teaching.

Evaluation report