UVA Launchpad, a summer program that combines career preparation and academic work, is partnering with Capital One this summer to give students the chance to learn from one of Virginia’s largest employers.

UVA Launchpad is a six-credit, eight-week summer program that combines coursework, boot camps and career training.

The program is open to rising second-, third- and fourth-year students from UVA and other colleges and universities. Incoming first-year students aren’t eligible. UVA’s College of Arts & Sciences and the School of Continuing and Professional Studies created the program to give students a summer opportunity combining academics and practical work preparation.

The program this summer runs June 21 to Aug. 12, and applications are now open. The program can be taken entirely online, but this summer – for the first time – students can choose to take a one-week, in-person class at Capital One’s Northern Virginia headquarters in Tyson’s Corner.

“UVA Launchpad is a transformational experience that helps students develop the skills and strategies necessary to be successful in today’s workplaces,” program manager Alexa Jeffress said. “Students have a really unique opportunity to collaborate on real-world problem-solving with UVA alumni at two companies that offer different perspectives in both size and sector: Capital One and Transfoam, a Charlottesville-based biotechnology company. Students will leave the program with an expanded professional network, experience to add to their résumés and greater career readiness.”

This summer, all Launchpad students will take a course, Complex Problem Solving and Strategic Decision Making, choosing between online and in-person options.

The in-person section will be hosted by Capital One. In it, students will learn from company experts on topics such as data privacy and ethical decision-making. The company is also providing real-world case studies for the course.

“We’re excited to partner with the University on UVA Launchpad this summer,” said Becky Heironimus, a UVA graduate and managing vice president of Enterprise Data and Privacy at Capital One. “This gives us an opportunity to put relevant work issues directly in front of students as part of their education, helping them develop skills that employers are looking for and allowing them to get hands-on experience in a corporate environment.”