Newswise — University of the Sciences announced its participation in a new national initiative called the LEAP Employer-Educator Compact. USciences President Dr. Helen Giles-Gee has signed the Compact which was developed by the Association of American Colleges and Universities (AAC&U) and by employers working with AAC&U.
AAC&U is a national organization of colleges and universities of which USciences is a long-standing member. Dr. Giles-Gee is a member of a special presidential leadership group within AAC&U called the LEAP Presidents’ Trust. Presidents’ Trust members and employers who work with them are the initial signatories to this ongoing national initiative to ensure that today’s students will be well prepared for economic, civic, and global challenges.
Participating campuses and employers will work together through 2014 to showcase employer support for the aims and outcomes of a broad liberal education and to show how higher education is helping students connect college learning with work, citizenship, and global challenges. As part of the Compact initiative, Dr. Giles-Gee and USciences is partnering with Independence HealthCom Strategies Group, Inc. to underscore the economic value of liberal education and to provide students with more hands-on learning opportunities to connect their campus learning with real-world contexts and problems. Independence HealthCom Strategies Group develops strategies and communication vehicles that support life science companies on a professional level.
“The value of having students who are science-based students rotate through my company is immeasurable,” said Dr. Donald J. M. Phillips, CEO of Independence HealthCom Strategies Group, Inc. and a member of USciences board of trustees. “For the students, they gain exposure that helps make them better healthcare professionals. And not only do they help us do work, but they challenge us in ways that we normally don’t get challenged. They come to us with enthusiasm and energy, and they bring robustness to the activities. In a number of instances, the rotation has changed their professional careers and outlooks. We have even hired some of our students who have done internships or rotations with us. I had no problem signing up for this because we already do it.”
At an April 10 Compact forum in Washington, DC, featuring remarks by U.S. Under Secretary of Education Martha Kanter, AAC&U launched the new LEAP Employer-Educator Compact to make high quality college learning a shared national priority. More than 250 college presidents, and business and nonprofit leaders have signed on to the LEAP Employer-Educator Compact. They have pledged to work together to ensure that all college students—including those attending two-year and four-year, public and private institutions—have access to a high quality liberal education that prepares them successfully for work, life, and citizenship.
“Too many students believe that the key to economic success is completion of a major whose title seems to promise a job,” said AAC&U president Carol Geary Schneider. “What the Compact and the research on employer priorities show is that, whatever the choice of major, employers say that career success will require broad liberal learning, strong 21st century skills, and ‘real-world’ experience and savvy. We want to make sure that students and their families hear this message from employers themselves.”
“Signing the LEAP Employer-Educator Compact fits directly into what USciences already does to encourage our students to get hands-on experiences in real-world settings as part of their education,” said Dr. Giles-Gee. “Our clinical, laboratory, and service rotations make students better prepared to enter the workforce and reinforce what they are learning in the classroom. I think that many companies will find that they are already providing these experiences, and by endorsing the Compact, they are recognizing their commitment. We are particularly pleased to partner in this initiative with CEO Donald Phillips and Independence HealthCom Strategies Group, Inc., and look forward as more of the companies and sites that we already engage with join this initiative.”
At the release event in Washington, DC, today, AAC&U also released a report, It Takes More Than a Major: Employer Priorities for College Learning and Student Success, summarizing the findings of a national survey of business and nonprofit employers. Among other things, the survey reveals that, after reading a definition, 74 percent of business and nonprofit leaders say they would recommend a twenty-first century liberal education to a young person they know in order to prepare for long-term professional success in today’s global economy.
The findings from this national survey of business and nonprofit leaders also reveal that:
• Nearly all employers surveyed (93 percent) say that “a demonstrated capacity to think critically, communicate clearly, and solve complex problems is more important than [a candidate’s] undergraduate major.”
• Even more (95 percent) say they prioritize hiring college graduates with skills that will help them contribute to innovation in the workplace.
• About 95 percent of those surveyed also say it is important that those they hire demonstrate ethical judgment and integrity; intercultural skills; and the capacity for continued new learning.
• More than 75 percent of those surveyed say they want more emphasis on five key areas including: critical thinking, complex problem-solving, written and oral communication, and applied knowledge in real-world settings.
• 80 percent of employers agree that, regardless of their major, every college student should acquire broad knowledge in the liberal arts and sciences.
Members of the Presidents’ Trust include leaders of institutions representing every sector of higher education—liberal arts colleges, community colleges, comprehensive state universities, and research universities. Business and nonprofit leaders signing the compact include individuals from many sectors of the economy including: finance, engineering, manufacturing, healthcare, human services, insurance, education, media, retail, real estate, and energy. For a full list of LEAP Presidents’ Trust members and employers signing the compact, see: www.aacu.org/leap/presidentstrust/compact.
All the individuals signing the LEAP Employer-Educator Compact have committed to:
1) Helping Americans understand the rising demands of a global workplace and the need for every student to acquire liberal education outcomes;2) Ensuring that all college students have access to experiences that help them develop the broad knowledge and intellectual skills needed for success;3) Expanding and supporting new designs for hands-on learning, including such things as senior projects, undergraduate research, and internships;4) Advancing the dual mission for American higher education to prepare students both for successful careers and for civic responsibility;5) Documenting progress in helping all students achieve key learning outcomes, including their ability to apply learning to complex problems.
For a full report of the complete findings from the 2013 survey of business and non-profit leaders, see: http://www.aacu.org/leap/public_opinion_research.cfm. At University of the Sciences, students embark on a challenging learning experience in a proving ground for successful professionals in the science and healthcare-related fields. A private institution dedicated to education, research, and service, and distinguished as the nation’s first college of pharmacy, the University has produced leaders in the science and healthcare marketplaces since its founding in 1821. Students in USciences’ five colleges learn to excel in scientific analysis and to apply their skills to improving healthcare in the lives of people worldwide through such disciplines as pharmacy, biology, physical therapy, healthcare business, and health policy. For more information, visit usciences.edu.
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