The transformation of the “Center for Career Development” to the “Center for Career Readiness and Life Skills” reflects an expanded departmental mission and scope while supporting the new strategic plan of UConn. The rebranding highlights a commitment to fostering well-rounded students who are prepared for both professional and personal challenges and post-graduation success. This alignment ensures that the center’s mission supports the overarching objectives of the institution of promoting holistic student success and powering a thriving Connecticut.
The plan re-envisions how we support all students — undergraduate and graduate — to achieve their goals. It centers the whole needs of students across all that we do, whether within our teaching and learning or across our academic supports and co-curricular and enrichment opportunities. Our intent is to ensure a fulfilling higher education experience toward the goal of graduation while also positioning students for academic, career, and life success once they leave us.
As Connecticut’s public flagship university, this plan will deepen UConn’s partnerships in service of our state and its communities. It recognizes the breadth of our impact via education, research, engagement and outreach. It identifies targeted areas of future focus that position Connecticut as a leader in our nation and world in health and wellness, economic development, and environmental sustainability.
Additionally, the reimagining of the Career Center ensures and accomplishes the following:
Broader Focus
The new brand reflects that the Career Center now offers a wider range of services beyond traditional career development, including life skills that are crucial for long-term personal and professional success. This shift indicates and acknowledges that career success and readiness are intertwined with personal growth and the development of essential life skills. The Center’s website now features Life Skills and each of the five life skills has a landing page or resource hub with blogs, courses, videos and more to support students in exploring and enhancing each one. Additionally, UConn is a Work+ institution. Work+ is a student success strategy that transforms student employment on campus from transactional to impactful by supporting working learners in developing key skills and career readiness that will benefit them post-graduation. During their time as a working learner on campus, students will be exposed to life skills and career readiness skills through intentionally designed professional development opportunities and assessments.
Emphasis on Readiness
“Career Readiness” includes a proactive approach, focusing on preparing students to enter and thrive in either the workforce or other post-graduation endeavors. This includes equipping them with the necessary skills, knowledge, and experiences to be career-ready upon graduation. Career readiness involves not only technical skills but also soft skills such as adaptability, teamwork, and problem-solving, which are highly valued by employers. This mission is clearly articulated in the university strategic plan.
Inclusion of Life Skills
Adding “Life Skills” to our brand indicates that the Center now provides student support beyond traditional university professional and career development services. Life skills can include core competencies such as communication, time management, and critical thinking, which are crucial for overall success and well-being. These skills help individuals navigate personal and professional challenges more effectively. This is supported by UConn’s Strategic Plan as follows:
- Strengthen students’ ability to financially navigate undergraduate and graduate school at UConn and develop financial literacy skills.
- Foster life and career readiness competencies in academic and co-curricular activities.
- Expand opportunities for early college experiences and lifelong learning to empower a diverse range of learners.
Additionally, data from the 2024 National Association of Colleges and Employers (NACE) Job Outlook Survey, indicates:
- 78% of employers who do not screen candidates by GPA are focusing on whether a college graduate has demonstrated proficiency in essential competencies.
- Employers rated core life skills such as communication (4.55/5.00) and critical thinking (4.48/5.00) as among the top-rated competencies, highlighting their crucial role in both personal and professional success.
Holistic Approach
Emphasizing life skills indicates a more holistic approach to preparing students not only for their careers but also for various aspects of life. The Center has included resources on our website that address this holistic approach to preparing students for their careers and life. These skills help to support the holistic development of our students outside of traditional university career development services. Enhanced support of this approach involves personalized coaching, workshops, and resources that address both career and personal development needs. Examples of enhanced supports include:
- New Life Skills Websites: The Center has developed new Life Skills websites focused on Creativity, Innovation, Entrepreneurship, Financial Literacy, and Emotional Intelligence.
- CivilTalk is a new “social emotional learning” service provided to help students strengthen their emotional intelligence skills and exercise civility in all interactions, both online and in person.
- AI Generated Support: The Center has contracted with a new partner, Quinncia, to provide AI-driven, personalized coaching sessions that help students improve their interview skills, resume writing, LinkedIn profile and overall career readiness. This personalized feedback helps students develop confidence and clarity in their career goals.
- Interstride, another recently introduced virtual offering provides tailored resources, guidance, workshops and webinars to help students navigate the complexities of job searching, internships, and career development, especially for those pursuing opportunities in a global context.
- Handshake, our overarching Career platform, connects students with a wide range of workshops, career fairs, and networking events hosted by employers. These events cover topics such as resume building, interview preparation, and professional communication, in addition to personal development areas like time management and stress reduction.
- UConn Work+ is a newly envisioned program that provides students with on-campus job opportunities that are intentionally designed to integrate career development into their daily work. These roles allow students to gain real-world experience while developing critical life skills such as time management, communication, and problem-solving, which are essential for both professional success and personal well-being. Through UConn Work+, students have access to career coaching and mentorship from supervisors who are trained to support both professional and personal development.
Attract a Broader Student Audience
By including life skills in the name and core offerings, the Center aims to attract a more diverse audience, including those who might not be seeking immediate career guidance but are interested in personal development and overall career readiness. This broader appeal can help engage students from various backgrounds and stages of their educational and career journey.
Career readiness is achieved through the attainment and demonstration of core competencies that will help students successfully pursue their career goals. NACE has identified eight core competencies (also known as transferable skills) that are highly valued by employers and considered key predictors of career success. Experiences at UConn and beyond offer many opportunities to develop and enhance these eight competencies, including participation in classroom projects and assignments, internships, co-ops, research, on-campus involvement or work experience.
Reflecting Trends
The rebranding reflects current trends in education and workforce development, where there is a growing body of research and recognition of the importance of life skills alongside technical and professional competencies. Educational institutions are increasingly emphasizing the development of well-rounded individuals who are prepared for the complexities of the modern world. This is supported by UConn’s Strategic Plan that includes a priority action of fostering life and career readiness competencies in academic and co-curricular activities.
- Research from Harvard University, along with the Carnegie Foundation and Stanford Research Center, found that 85% of job success comes from having well-developed life skills, while only 15% is attributed to technical skills.
- LinkedIn Learning 2023 Workplace Learning report revealed that the top three skills employers are focusing on are leadership, communication, and teamwork. Additionally, 75% of employers indicated that soft skills are equally or more important than technical skills.
- The World Economic Forum’s Future of Jobs report highlights that by 2025, half of all employees will need reskilling, with a focus on both technical skills and core life skills such as adaptability and emotional intelligence.
- The National Soft Skills Association reports that 75% of long-term job success depends on mastering soft skills, compared to only 25% depending on technical skills.
- The 2023 Global Skills Report conducted by Coursera showed that the most in-demand skills by employers include communication, problem-solving, and critical thinking, indicating a growing emphasis on life skills in addition to technical competencies.
Alignment with UConn’s Strategic Plan
The transition/rebranding is fundamentally supported by UConn’s Strategic Plan that articulates, in part:
- Provide culturally competent, sustained advising, helping students to successfully navigate their academic and career pathways, including between undergraduate and graduate programs.
- Strengthen life and career readiness competencies in academic and co-curricular activities.
- Deliver equitable undergraduate and graduate student support across campuses including mental health services, student advising, and career services and assist in facilitating housing, transportation, and dining options.
- Ensure academic offerings and experiential learning at UConn that fuels economic development and educates the future workforce in CT, including reinforcing the State’s leadership in emerging technologies and health sciences.
- In executing this plan, we will strengthen holistic student success in many ways, including providing increased connections with faculty and staff who can mentor and support them, positioning them for a successful path toward graduation and beyond. We will expand student opportunities to explore research with our world-class faculty, broaden engagement in experiential learning that supports career success, and increase support for student participation in co-curricular activities, including any of our 700 student clubs.
Overall, the rebranding to “Center for Career Readiness and Life Skills” aims to better communicate the expanded services and support offered to our students, emphasizing a comprehensive approach to individual development and overall career readiness.
