​​The Network for Vocation in Undergraduate Education (NetVUE) is a nationwide network of colleges and universities formed to enrich the intellectual and theological exploration of vocation among undergraduate students. This initiative is administered by the Council of Independent Colleges (CIC) with generous supported from Lilly Endowment Inc. and members' dues.

CIC administers NetVUE with guidance from an advisory council comprised of representatives from participating institutions.

Purposes of NetVUE

The purposes of NetVUE are to:

• Deepen the understanding of the intellectual and theological dimensions of vocational exploration;
  
• Examine the role of vocational exploration in a variety of institutional contexts;
• Share knowledge, best practices, and reflection on experiences across participating campuses;
  
• Facilitate the incorporation of additional colleges and universities into this enterprise; and
• Sustain an extended program in the intellectual and theological exploration of vocation.

Colleges and universities rooted in the liberal arts are particularly well suited to undertake the task of educating future leaders who are theologically literate, whose attitudes and behaviors are shaped by their values and commitments, and who are eager to sustain a life of service that is guided by a sense of calling.

Financial Support

Financial support of NetVUE comes from a combination of membership dues and support from Lilly Endowment Inc. Thanks to Lilly’s generous support, dues are modest. Incrementally, as Lilly’s level of support recedes by 2020, future network activities become self-supporting by dues from participating institutions, along with fees for some programs, events, and services.

History of NetVUE

​In 1999, Lilly Endowment Inc. launched Programs for the Theological Exploration of Vocation (PTEV) to support independent colleges and universities in establishing or strengthening programs that would (a) help students examine the relationship between their faith and vocational choices; (b) provide opportunities for young people to explore Christian ministry leadership; and (c) enhance the capacity of an institution’s faculty and staff to teach and mentor students in this regard. The objective was to identify and nurture a new generation of highly talented and committed leaders for religious communities and for society.

Over the subsequent years, Lilly supported 88 colleges and universities with PTEV programs. Efforts on each of these campuses encompassing the callings of students, faculty and staff were supported by a series of national conferences for representatives of participating institutions. As the Lilly Endowment’s active support concluded, a number of college and university presidents, pleased with the positive results of these programs, asked the Council of Independent Colleges to extend and expand a nation-wide campus-supported network for the theological exploration of vocation.

In early 2008, CIC began to craft a vision for such a network, identified its goals and laid the groundwork for an inaugural conference in March 2009. In the fall of 2009, NetVUE was launched as a network of colleges and universities committed to fostering the theological exploration of vocation in their campus communities.

National conferences and regional events are held in alternating years.  National conferences bring together teams of campus leaders with expert resource persons from across the country and serve as one of the NetVUE cornerstone activities. NetVUE funding from member dues and Lilly Endowment Inc. provides financial support for national conferences.

2019 NetVUE Conference

The 2019 NetVUE Conference will be held on March 21–23, 2019, in Louisville, Kentucky. The conference theme will be Broadening the Scope of Vocational Exploration.

View program and registration information.

Previous Conferences

2015 NetVUE Conference
St. Louis, MO

2013 NetVUE Conference
Indianapolis, IN

2011 NetVUE Conference
Indianapolis, IN

Teaching Vocational Exploration Seminar

CIC is pleased to announce a multidisciplinary seminar, Teaching Vocational Exploration, for full-time faculty members in all fields at colleges and universities that are members of NetVUE.

June 18–22, 2018 (Chicago, IL)
View Program Information.

June 17–21, 2019 (Chicago, IL)
View Program Information.

​Regional events and national conferences are held in alternating years. NetVUE supports regional gatherings and multi-campus collaborations on specific topics. NetVUE member campuses, or a group of campuses, are encouraged to organize and host such gatherings based on issues or themes of interest. These events will build smaller networks among member campuses based on location, affiliation, program offerings, or other points of mutual interest. NetVUE funding from member dues and Lilly Endowment Inc. provides financial support for regional gatherings.

2017–2018 Regional Gatherings

In 2017–2018 several NetVUE regional and topical gatherings will occur. Each is described below with links for details. To register for any of these events, please complete the NetVUE registration process which will include logging in first with your CIC login and password. Requests for cancellation received within seven days prior to the gathering are ineligible for a refund.

Vocation and Gen Z: Meaning-Making with Digital Natives

Hosted by Benedictine University (Lisle, IL)
October 13–14, 2017

Purpose: Gen Z is the first group of first true digital natives. This NetVUE gathering will focus on how to understand them and ways to engage them in reflection on vocation in a way that is authentic and gives them critical distance from the world of the glass screen. Critical reflection can help these students integrate their scattered interests, deepen their connections to God and social justice, and commit to sustained personal development of a life of meaning and purpose.

Event registration deadline: October 10, 2017
Lodging reservation deadline: October 6, 2017

New Scholarly Resources on Vocation

Held at the American Academy of Religion annual meeting (Boston, MA)
November 17, 2017

Purpose: Even though the language of vocation and calling has deeply theological (and even specifically Christian) roots, it is being increasingly employed by a variety of academic institutions, including secular ones and those with multi-faith constituencies. The NetVUE Scholarly Resources Project represents one attempt to think through the impact of this language, drawing on the work of scholars in theology, religious studies, philosophy, and related fields. This one-day gathering is designed to provide an academic setting in which to examine and discuss the Project's three books, all of which are published or forthcoming from Oxford University Press.

​Event registration deadline: November 3, 2017
Lodging reservation deadline: October 15, 2017

Note: Registrant should contact hotel to make a lodging reservation–a link to hotel options can be found on the event website.

Vocation Across the Academy: Storytelling, Mapmaking, and a Sense of Direction

Hosted by Berry College (Rome, GA)
February 23–24, 2018

Purpose: This NetVUE gathering is a book retreat to discuss content and use of the second NetVUE Scholars book, Vocation across the Academy: A New Vocabulary for Higher Education. NetVUE scholars will focus on the importance of narrative as students set directions through both liberal arts nad profession-related studies. Thoughtful exchanges about the book will be interwoven with a campus tour and reception as well as other activities on these exceptional campus grounds.

Event registration and lodging reservation deadline: January 19, 2018

Note: NetVUE staff will make your hotel reservation and you will receive an email confirmation.

Vocation Across the Academy: Calling, Conflict, and the Necessity of Action

Hosted by California Lutheran University (Thousand Oaks, CA)
March 9–10, 2018

Purpose: This NetVUE gathering is a book retreat to discuss content and use of the second NetVUE Scholars book, Vocation across the Academy: A New Vocabulary for Higher Education. NetVUE Scholars and experienced leaders will focus on the importance of guiding students through competing claims to core commitments. Thoughtful exchanges about the book will be interwoven with practices and experiences that illustrate California Lutheran University strategies for vocational exploration.

Event registration and lodging reservation deadline: February 2, 2018

Note: Registrant should contact hotel to make a lodging reservation–hotel options can be found on institution’s event website.

Mentoring Undergraduate Students of Color: The Shape of Deep Purpose

Hosted by Elizabethtown College (event held in Washington, DC)
March 23–24, 2018

Purpose: This occasion will explore in community both the general and particular callings, strengths, and possibilities of CIC NetVUE schools related to mentoring undergraduate students of color in both predominantly/historical White institutions and in minority-serving institutions. Leaders will explore cultural interpretations of vocation, spirituality, religion, deep meaning, and purpose in the lives of students of color as well as high-impact practices that support their explorations.

The Changing Nature of Work: Career Development and Vocation

Hosted by Augustana College (Rock Island, IL)
June 12–13, 2018

Purpose: This NetVUE gathering provides an opportunity to explore the connections among career development, academic advising, and vocational reflection – and to do so in highly practical ways. Specifically, it aims to foster collaboration across various campus offices and academic divisions. Career services personnel, academic advisors, faculty members, and others may all be promoting vocational reflection and discernment, but they may sometimes find themselves nudging students in very different directions. How might vocational exploration be integrated into a more holistic model of career development, while still validating the liberal-arts orientation of NetVUE institutions? Through keynote presentations, networking, and conversation, participants will learn about best practices, hear from experts doing this work, and think collaboratively as campus teams.

Vocation Across the Academy Grants

Vocation across the Academy Grants are available to support institution-wide initiatives at NetVUE member colleges and universities over a three-year period to expand ongoing programming in the intellectual and theological exploration of vocation across the liberal arts and applied professional fields. Proposals that seek to integrate vocational exploration as a continuum from the first year through the senior year are especially encouraged. For this new grant program, institutions may request up to $25,000 for use in the first year. Matching funds raised from third-party sources are required to support the proposed activities in the second and third years. Upon fulfillment of the matching requirement, institutions may receive up to $10,000 in additional grant funds for use during the second and third years. Thus, the entire funding from CIC and third-party sources may be up to $60,000 for the three-year period of the grant. This is the second round of selection.

Professional Development Awards

Professional Development Awards were available to support opportunities for the professional development activities that enhance the knowledge, skills, and expertise of faculty and staff members who support undergraduate vocational initiatives. All eligible NetVUE member institutions were able to request $5,000 to $10,000 for use over one full academic year to support professional development of faculty and staff members to strengthen vocational exploration programming for students. This is the sixth round of selection.

View eligibility and application information.

Application Deadline: April 12, 2019

Program Development Grants

Program Development Grants are intended to deepen, expand, or otherwise strengthen vocational exploration programs that were already underway and supported by NetVUE member colleges and universities. Institutions that did not previously receive funding through Lilly Endowment’s prior Programs for Theological Exploration of Vocation (PTEV) initiative were eligible to request between $25,000 and $50,000 for use over a two-year period to develop existing vocational exploration initiatives. Since the PTEV program has concluded, the Lilly Endowment seeks to recognize and encourage colleges and universities that, with their own funds, have been striving for similar efforts. To date, five rounds of these grants have been awarded to more than 100 NetVUE member institutions.

View awards given.

Chaplaincy Implementation Grants

Chaplaincy Implementation Grants were offered to NetVUE member colleges and universities to implement plans to strengthen campus chaplaincy that were developed as a result of participation in one of the two 2014 NetVUE Chaplaincy Conferences. Eligible institutions were able to request up to $20,000 for use over one full academic year to support programmatic efforts to strengthen campus chaplaincy. This was a one-time opportunity.

View awards given.

Vocation Exploration Renewal Grants

Vocation Exploration Renewal Grants were provided to NetVUE member colleges and universities for use in the 2016–2017 academic year. Eligible institutions were able to request up to $25,000 to refocus and reinvigorate vocational exploration programs for undergraduate education. These grants were provided to institutions that already had made substantial and long-term investments in vocation initiatives. This was a one-time opportunity.

View awards given.

Questions?

Questions about the NetVUE grant programs can be addressed to Lynn Hunnicutt, assistant director of NetVUE, at lhunnicutt@cic.nche.edu or (253) 535-7644.

NetVUE Consultants

NetVUE Request for Consultant Form

NetVUE Consultant Profiles - Carter Aiken, Julie Massey, and Hannah Schell

NetVUE Campus Visits Program

The NetVUE Campus Visit Program provides an opportunity for a three- to four-member team from a NetVUE member college or university to visit another NetVUE member campus to learn about effective practices in programs for undergraduate exploration of vocation. Visiting campus teams can observe and discuss with experienced faculty and staff members how they established successful programs, faculty and staff development activities, courses and course materials, and plans that led to stable, broadly supported programs. The goal is for the visiting team to strengthen its own program by taking advantage of the lessons learned by well-established programs.

A limited number of campus visit grants is available to NetVUE member institutions. Grants will cover travel, housing, and meals for a one- to two-day visit for up to $850 per team member for a team of three or four members. The use of grant funds should be planned with the host campus to support meal and lodging expenses during the visit. The NetVUE Campus Visit program is generously supported by a grant from Lilly Endowment Inc. to CIC.

NetVUE members interested in a visit should contact a potential host campus and make preliminary arrangements before requesting funding from NetVUE.

To request funding for a NetVUE Campus Visit, please complete a NetVUE Campus Visit form and submit it by email to lspoelhof@cic.nche.edu or fax to (616) 395-6753. The request should include the following:

• A brief description of the campus visit goals, needs, and interests;
• A listing of the names and titles of the visiting team leader and team members;
• The contact information for the host institution;
• A one-sheet budget to cover travel, meal, and lodging expenses for both the visiting team and the host campus up to a maximum of $400 for travel and $450 for meals and lodging per visiting team member for a team of three or four members (NetVUE will reimburse expenses to the institutions after the visit);
  
• A one-sheet proposed schedule for the visit; and
  
• Approval of President or Chief Academic Officer.

Within 30 days of the visit, the visiting team should submit a one- to two-page report to NetVUE summarizing what was learned and describing the next steps to be taken by the visiting campus. The report should be accompanied by a request for visit expense reimbursement.

For additional information, please contact David Cunningham, director of NetVUE, by email at dcunningham@cic.nche.edu or by phone at (616) 395-6750.​

​The Network for Vocation in Undergraduate Education (NetVUE) currently has 229 ​institutional members.

View a map and listing of NetVUE member institutions.

View membership and renewal information.

• Access the PTEV Resources