Lumina Foundation is committed to creating a post-high school learning environment that’s accessible, lifelong, and prepares everyone for a global future. To realize this vision, Lumina works to ensure that, by 2040, 75 percent of adults in the U.S. labor force will have a college degree or other credential of value leading to economic prosperity. Central to this vision is scaling career-connected high-impact practices (HIPs) in higher education—experiences like internships, undergraduate research, study abroad, service learning, and capstone projects that bridge academic learning with real-world workforce preparation.

HIPs consistently and effectively promote student engagement, deep learning, and degree completion. When intentionally aligned with career pathways, these experiences further support students’ readiness for the workforce, help close gaps in student outcomes, and strengthen connections between academic learning and labor market needs.

Initially introduced as an “umbrella” concept to capture a vision for next-generation teaching and learning, HIPs quickly gained traction and became widely adopted across higher education. However, HIPs were often reduced to checklists rather than deeply integrated curricular programs and pathways.

Today, the field is undergoing a critical shift. We now understand that simply offering HIPs is not enough. Success depends not just on their presence, but on how well they are implemented and who has access to them. To truly fulfill their promise, HIPs must be delivered with intentionality, integrated into students’ academic and career pathways, and designed to ensure participation and meaningful outcomes for all learners—especially Black, Hispanic, Latino, and Native American students, as well as students from low-income families.

This new era of HIPs calls for innovation, alignment, and scale to move beyond checked boxes to transform the undergraduate experience in inclusive, career-connected ways.

The peer learning and collaborations amongst funded institutions will be facilitated by Excelencia in Education, American Association of State Colleges and Universities (AASCU), and Center for Innovation in Postsecondary Education (CIPE).