This fall, The Career and Professional Readiness Center (CPRC) will offer a new program to provide students with a competitive edge in their fields.
According to Connie Whitcomb, the director of the CPRC, The Competitive Edge Certificate (The EDGE) program was created by the CPRC to teach participants useful skills for future internships, leadership positions and jobs. The EDGE will cover a wide range of topics, including self-awareness, professional communication, personal branding, networking, interviewing and workplace dynamics.
“What we were seeing was that employers were finding that college grads were coming to the interview process for opportunities somewhat ill-prepared in professional skills,” Whitcomb said. “We’re talking about the personal skills, the communicational skills and the understanding of expectations in the workplace.”
According to Whitcomb, students will participate in a number of seminars to tune their professional skills and help them prepare for future professional endeavors. She added that the CPRC wanted to help students by tailoring the seminars to the specific improvement areas of college students and graduates.
Whitcomb said the program will begin with both a welcome event on Friday, Oct. 2 at 3 p.m. and the program’s introductory presentation in early October. The EDGE will continue through April 2016.
After completion of the program, participants will receive both a certificate of completion and a letter from Sr. Margaret Carney, O.S.F. Participants will also be congratulated at a reception.
“[The EDGE] will give students grounded confidence,” Whitcomb said. “This will be confidence that you really do understand how to carry yourself professionally.”
While this program was just announced this past week, registration has already closed. Whitcomb said that an overwhelming amount of students applied within the first week.
“I have decided to join in the EDGE program in order to prepare myself for the professional world,” Matt Creeron, a senior sports studies major, said. “I’m looking forward to what the speakers recommend. Lastly I feel you learn the best from hearing people’s past experiences.”
Marie Wilson, program administrator for the EDGE and new career counselor for the CPRC said she is also excited about the start of the program.
“It’s going to set students apart from other students and it’s going to give [students] the skills [they] need to be marketable as employees,” Wilson said.
mcgurllt14@bonaventure.edu
