Skills Initiative

The Professional and Self Development Skills Initiative

The Initiative's Mission

Providing the learning and application opportunities for students to practice, perfect, and perform ethics, leadership and professional skills and experience 21st century perspectives.

So, how does the School of Business plan to meet this mission? The goal is to help the student graduate as a skilled and competent individual who is ready to:

• Be accepted into the best graduate schools.
• Be ready for any form of employment post-graduation.
• Be well prepared for any entrepreneurial and community service/experience.

The Initiative will assist student skills development through a variety of resources both on and off campus, as well as through Student Organizations. Through the use of a Professional Self Development Grid, students will be able to manage their own development. The ‘grid’ is a tool developed by the faculty that highlights the skills and perspectives that the FSB believes all students should have before they graduate.

Summary of the Initiative

Client group:

All Business majors, minors, and pre-business students.

Service Areas:

1. Mentoring and counseling regarding career and life planning preparation (Co-op, Intern, and Extern activities available).
2. Referrals to other campus services and resources that provide skills development opportunities (e.g. Career Services, Buck Rodgers Leadership program, the Wilks Leadership Institute, the Career Exploration and Testing Center, Page Center and Entrepreneurship Lab, Service Learning courses, and other extra curricular activities).
3. Provision of skills and perspective content via seminars, speakers, and FSB student organizations programs (includes new and developing programs developed via collaborative and cooperative efforts among the FSB student organizations).

Expectations of Students:

1. Utilize services outlined above.
2. Self manage through the “Grid” while enhancing their life-long learning component.

Evaluation Process:

1. Each entering student receives measurement to determine their current status and needs.
2. Throughout the student’s progress reflection papers and counseling with center staff will identify their progress and quality of development.
3. Prior to graduation: student completes post-assessment to determine advancement since their entry into the center (comparing pre and post assessments). A final reflection paper will allow the student to articulate their personal evaluation. Finally, the FSB senior survey results will be used to assess the center’s effectiveness.

Results Desired:

1. Students–Confident, skilled, and competent accepted into the best graduate schools, employed in large numbers, and well prepared for any employment, entrepreneurial, and community service/experience.
2. School of Business–Develop a reputation as a source of highly competent and productive graduates, which attracts global recruiters.

Contact Information

Upcoming Workshops

• September 11 , 2008 - Interview/Resume Workshop - 6:00 pm, Laws 205
• October 6, 2008 - Deloitte Consulting Workshop - 6:00 pm, Laws 205
• October 22, 2008 - Personal Mission Statement Workshop - 5:00 pm, Laws 205
• October 28, 2008 - Job Benefits Workshop - 6:00 pm, Laws 205

Last modified on 9/4/08 | Content maintained by Student Development