Students are no longer confined to traditional classroom settings but are encouraged to explore their passions through real-world experiences. Last month, Sue Walker, Symplicity’s Client Support Manager, and Bill Heinrich, PhD, Director of Mindset sat down to share major themes in experiential learning right now and how you can plan, execute, and reflect with Symplicity CSM tools.
While students are searching for internships and jobs, CSM provides a one-stop resource to support their search. When students feel encouraged, they become invested in what they’re doing.
Here are four trends to keep in mind to engage students with experiential learning:
- Belonging
When students feel socially connected, supported, and respected by their peers, faculty, and teachers, they then trust their teachers and peers, giving students a sense of belonging. Your institution can foster this by bringing all programs and opportunities into one experiential learning system, like CSM enabling students to easily find opportunities that meet their goals. Encourage faculty, students, and supervisors to actively participate in the learning process by discussing what will be gained from each experience, how it will be learned, and how it will be demonstrated.
- Inclusion
Empower students with the tools they need to succeed – help guide and teach students to dissect job descriptions effectively, ensuring they understand what the job is looking for so they don’t miss out on opportunities. By using one system, like CSM, to pull in all opportunities and show them there is something for everyone. Know and highlight which employers focus on DEI, accessibility, and highlight them to students. On the flip side, coach employers on writing better, more inclusive job descriptions.
- Scaling Student Success
Think about what the definition of student success means to you. While definitions may vary between institutions, the goal remains the same: to equip students with the skills and experiences they need to thrive. Within CSM, have employers login to create an online space for students and employers to interact via events, jobs, EL, and resume books. Expand your network of employers as students report placements they garnered on their own. As you expand, make sure you’re gathering and using feedback to streamline processes when you can to remove any unnecessary roadblocks.
- Reporting
Use data and reporting to your advantage. Use reporting features in CSM to uncover valuable insights and correlations between student involvement and employability. Share this data across campus to demonstrate the value that career services brings to the entire institution. Recognize that involvement in experiential learning often positively correlates with future employability, reinforcing the importance of these experiences.
Experiential Learning is the best approach for students to gain real-world experience before graduation. By keeping these four trends in mind and leveraging the capabilities of Symplicity CSM, you can ensure your students are successful in their experiential learning efforts.
To learn more about Experiential Learning in CSM, email info@symplicity.com or fill out this quick form.