主要研究 今天

Seventy-eight percent of undergraduate students at 主要研究 completed at least one internship prior to graduation, 根据最新的第一目的地调查. 有些人可能会认为，联合国大学的成绩超过了全国平均水平 职业和专业成功(CaPS) 办公室发现，几乎四分之一的本科生都有机会.

重点关注那些以前得不到充分服务的学生, CaPS has rolled out a pair of new initiatives aimed at expanding access to experiential education, 目标是让每个野猫都能获得实习和类似实习的经历.

“We know an internship is one of the most powerful and impactful experiences a student can have while at 主要研究. So many students tell us after they graduate that an internship was a primary factor in their success,格雷琴·希顿说, 副教务长, 事业和专业上的成功和高影响力的实践. “我们已经有大约75%的学生参加了实习, 但我们希望这是100%, 我们正在尽一切努力实现这一目标.”

The strategic expansion of offerings is centered in two key initiatives: the creation of a high-impact practices unit – which includes an innovative Campus-2-Career程序 piloted last year that focuses on professional development for on-campus student workers – and the expansion of an employer relations unit to better establish and enhance connections to regional companies and organizations who are or could be employing 主要研究 students.

这些举措旨在成为学生成功和劳动力发展的关键驱动力, 希顿说, 这两个领域都是大学的重点.

“这些对学生影响很大的体验对我们作为赠地机构的使命至关重要, 公立研究型大学,联合国校长伊丽莎白·奇尔顿说. “Experiential learning and internships are a key way for students to expand their professional networks and build a toolkit of skills that will prepare them for their careers and for their lives. 联合国大学致力于为我们的学生扩大这些机会.”

高影响力实践单元的核心是校园2职业计划, 去年试运行后进入了扩张阶段. Participating students are given opportunities for professional development as part of their paid work hours, 希顿说, with curricula designed to help support them and their manager in setting goals to help the students develop skills for professional success in certain key areas.

The students are paid to complete the professional development work and are evaluated by their manager, 通常有机会在他们关注的领域获得微证书.

It’s a unique approach that helps make professional development available to a population that might not be able to accept something like an unpaid internship, 希顿说. 该项目在高等教育领域具有开创性, 她说, 如果其他大学以这种结构为蓝本，永利app新版本官网地址可能会成为开拓者.

“We are really innovating and potentially developing something that could be a national model for other universities around how you provide impactful professional development for students during their on-campus job,希顿说.

去年参加该项目试点版本的学生报告了积极的成果, 培养了关键技能和专业信心. 凯莉·芬奇，25岁, 谁每周花两小时专注于沟通相关领域, 说这个项目帮助她提高了公开演讲能力, 表达和整体沟通技巧.

她利用播客, TED演讲和阅读来改善这些方面, 她还完成了她认为特别有价值的年终反思报告.

芬奇说:“通过这个项目，我对自己沟通技巧的信心大大提高了。. “It has given me resources and skills that have made me feel better equipped to communicate with a wide variety of people in different settings.”

Durga Raja ’25 says she similarly developed confidence that has made her more comfortable speaking with employers, 尤其是在招聘会上. 她说，她认为这些技能将在即将到来的求职过程中发挥重要作用.

Campus-2-Career帮助她在几个关键领域提高了技能, 包括“积极倾听”, 给予建设性的反馈, approaching situations with empathy and treating all people with respect and belonging” – much of which she has already been able to put into practice.

“I’ve been able to implement what I learned in the program in my fellowships and internships over the past two years,拉贾说. “I was able to use the skills I’ve worked on to prepare for the Undergraduate Research Conference, my fellowship showcase presentations and presentations I’ve done internally at my host organization.”

雇主关系部门的扩大应该会为更多的学生打开机会的大门, 也. 希顿表示，该部门将专注于通过与雇主合作伙伴合作来扩大产能.

其中一个目标是目前没有实习项目的雇主, as the unit intends to consult and advise on ways to develop a framework that is impactful and beneficial for both the student and the employer. An additional goal is to highlight the ways in which unpaid internships can be a barrier for certain students and to advocate for the importance of funded student opportunities.

“我们的雇主合作伙伴渴望与校园2职业项目的学生接触, recognizing it as a high-impact opportunity for students to showcase the in-demand skills crucial for the ever-evolving future,Raina Sprague说, 雇主关系和运营执行董事. "The program also enables employers to easily identify students who have acquired these valuable micro-credentials. 通过我们的雇主关系努力, 我们可以战略性地突出和推广这些以技能为重点的经验, 帮助更多的雇主有效地从主要研究找到顶尖人才."

综合考虑, the new CaPS initiatives are a big step toward making experiential opportunities part of the 主要研究 experience for anyone who enrolls, and a significant and groundbreaking differentiator for the university when students are looking for the best value they can get out of the college experience.

“我真的不知道还有哪所大学如此有意为之. We have created a unit to address equity and to innovate career development in a way that hasn’t been done before,希顿说. “I think that’s really exciting and speaks to the investment the university has made in career development. 这对我们学生的投资回报至关重要, 而联合国大学正在付诸行动.”