The University of Minnesota will soon offer a retirement preparation course for Twin Cities employers and their senior employees, according to an announcement made Thursday.

The course, called Encore Transitions, will be offered through a collaboration of the university's College of Continuing Education and Office of Human Resources. It is designed to help late-career workers transition to post-retirement life. The course will be offered on four Fridays starting May 6.

During the four daylong sessions, participants will explore both paid and volunteer post-career work and hear from happy retirees. The university says the course will help participants begin visualizing and creating options for the future.

The sessions were originally offered to university employees last fall and reportedly received positive reviews, which led to the program's rollout to area employers. According to the university's statement, responses showed that participants came away with greater clarity about what their next stage might look like, less fear of the future, and an enhanced ability to take positive risks.

“Given that University of Minnesota researchers have conducted path-breaking research about retirement, life transitions, and the effects of maintaining engaged, purposeful lives, we thought the Encore Transitions course was a tremendous opportunity to offer that knowledge to our own workers who are nearing retirement,” Vice President for Human Resources Carol Carrier said in a statement.

Through the university's College of Continuing Education, working adults can work toward individualized or applied degrees or certificates, or participate in short courses, workshops, and events.