This study describes the theoretical rationale underpinning the design and implementation of a career-related activity as an optional element of a virtual residential school. The activity comprised an interview with a practising chartered psychologist recorded as an MP3 audio file, which was subsequently supported by an asynchronous discussion held in a dedicated online forum. The impact of the activity was assessed, based on the analysis of activity logs and the student response to a post-course survey, together with the ethnographic data from the discussion forum. The design of the activity and its value for enriching the student experience and encouraging social presence and a sense of community is discussed and shows that there were benefits from this approach. (Contains 2 tables and 2 figures.)