University College is proud to support students at every step of the career readiness lifecycle. Whether a student is building their first resume, exploring majors, or returning as an alumnus to make a career change, Career Exploration and Development (CED) is the hub for educating students and alumni to make informed career decisions.
Recently, CED was recognized for its Career Navigation course, which won the National John N. Gardner Institutional Excellence for Students in Transition Award. The curriculum focuses on giving students the tools they need to embrace self-authorship and empower individuals from diverse backgrounds to build an aspirational self-image for their future career and life. The course provides a guided pathway for students to identify their V.I.P.S. (values, interests, personality, and skills).
Of the students who took the Career Navigation course in their first fall semester between 2014-2020, 97% persisted to the following spring, compared to 72% of students who did not take the course in their first semester. Beyond the retention and persistence data, students also advocate for the impact of Career Navigation on their journey. Annemarie Schofield, Senior Speech Pathology and Audiology major describes, "Career navigation was the kick I needed to get out there and explore fields and talk to professionals in them. It made me look at what I valued and gave me an action plan to get out there and see if it was for me".
CED embodies a model of engaging students “early and often”. This means collaborating with campus partners to embed career education in the 鶹ӰԺ student experience. A new initiative called Career Academy builds on the spirit of embedding career education in the student experience at KSU. Launched this Fall semester, Career Academy is an online module collection that can easily be embedded into any course or other organized activity and used by instructors and advisors to support students as they progress through their career and academic development.
CED inspires all members of the KSU community to have tools and resources to feel comfortable and confident when talking about career plans and always staying focused on the future. To learn more, visit /career.