University Career Center Awarded for Integration of Career Competencies

The University Career Center (UCC) was recently awarded for its endeavor to ensure our graduates are equipped with the top career competencies employers seek, regardless of profession. The Southern Association of College and Employers presented UCC with the Imaginative Spirit Award for the innovative programs implemented over the past couple of years to improve competency integration.

The award highlights the University’s Competency Compass Portal, integration with campus partners and campus jobs, as well as the new faculty Competency Institute that is geared to help faculty re-imagine their courses to bring out the career competencies they are naturally teaching in their courses.

Career Competencies broadly prepare college graduates for a successful transition into the workplace and include communication, critical thinking, diversity, equity and inclusion, leadership, professionalism, self awareness, teamwork, and technology. UCC helps students connect with clubs and organizations, internships, and courses that can develop these competencies. Then, UCC shows students how to translate those acquired skills on resumes and in job interviews.

“All of this is part of our overarching, long term goal, of helping students understand the return-on-investment of higher education and discover purposeful work after graduation,” said Patrick Madsen, executive director of the University Career Center.

This work also has been featured in research conducted by The Council for Adult and Experiential Learning (CAEL) and presented at the state and regional level. UCC staff also has offered consulting to numerous institutions on how UNC Charlotte is translating higher education for the future of work.