Linking Education Experiences to In-Demand Skills
Experiences That Look Beyond Graduation
A recent IBM survey of industry and academic leaders revealed the skills students need to succeed at work. Among them are analysis and problem solving, collaboration and teamwork, and business-context communication, along with flexibility, agility and adaptability. Experience-based practical learning has become even more critical. Partnerships between academia and the private sector help create an even more valuable education ecosystem.
The University of Kansas School of Business actively partners with the business community to benefit students in many ways — from attending guest lectures in the big auditorium or viewing them on the videowall; to learning advanced accounting from partners of a major accounting firm; to keeping up with the financial markets through the Bloomberg ticker streaming in the great hall; to engaging in casual conversations with business leaders as their presence is announced on the large screens.
Innovative universities offer integrated AV experiences rich with stimuli that rival some of the most admired organizations, including Pixar Animation Studio, with its atrium space that is a central hub for spontaneous collaboration; and design and innovation consulting firm IDEO, whose San Francisco open office includes private booths for focused work. When students graduate, they will fit right in to a work environment they have already experienced.
Some leading higher education institutions have been particularly innovative in integrating AV experiences throughout their campus communities, whether revitalizing existing structures and spaces or creating new facilities designed around experiences from the ground up. They provide an inspiring way forward for all of higher education.
