Implementation of ACUE's "Developing student’s career ready skills" module at WVU Tech

Abstract

At WVU Tech (West Virginia University Institute of Technology), we implemented a teaching module “Developing student’s career ready skills” developed by ACUE (American College and University Educators). Embedding career guidance into teaching courses relate and equip students’ readiness with the necessary skillsets they need to be successful in their professional career. Through the ACUE module, we learned how to develop assignments, projects, and other relevant activities that craft students’ skillsets for their personal development and professional success. In our first implementation of this module, select in-class group-assignments were provided in two engineering courses. The outcomes from this implementation were noticeable to be effective in molding career-based education in the classroom. We plan to develop a semester-long team projects, assign work-study activities that advance students’ communication skills, or train students for effective teamwork that follows managerial protocols. In addition, we have located student assignments/projects in discipline-specific elective courses, capstone design projects, federal work-study programs as some of the proper student-interaction opportunities to embed these career ready skills.