Essential Skills Acquisition

MWSU Master Academic Plan Global Initiative #2:
Essential Skills Acquisition

As part of our current Master Academic Plan, Missouri Western State University is committed to engaging 100% of our students in at least one guided experience directly related to essential skills acquisition prior to graduation.

These experiences are designed to develop critical thinking, ethical decision making, teamwork, communication skills, problem solving skills, work ethic, flexibility and adaptability, and interpersonal skills transferable to career readiness.

Definitions Associated with Essential Skills Acquisition

Career Readiness

“Career readiness is a foundation from which to demonstrate requisite core competencies that broadly prepare the college educated for success in the workplace and lifelong career management.” NACE Career Competencies 2021
https://www.naceweb.org/uploadedfiles/files/2021/resources/nace-career-readiness-competencies-revised-apr-2021.pdf

Career Ready Competencies (Essential Workplace Skills)

Career & Self Development
Communication
Critical Thinking
Equity & Inclusion
Leadership
Professionalism
Teamwork
Technology

ESA Guided Experience

An experience specifically designed to train and assess a student in one or more of the career ready competencies. Guided experiences may occur within both credit and co-curricular context. An ESA guided experience articulates student learning outcome(s) associated with one or more career competency. Examples might include, but are not limited to

A credit bearing course such as a course in oral or written communication.
A lesson within a course such as a career planning module in a senior seminar. Updated 07/12/2022 – Griffon Office of Applied Learning
An internship where a student receives training in, and subsequently engages in, a career competency area.
Working as a student employee where a student receives training in, and subsequently engages in, a career competency area.
Serving in a leadership or management role within a registered student organization where training is provided in a competency area.

Skill/Competency	Definition	Definition Example Behaviors
Career & Self Development	Proactively develop oneself and one’s career through continual personal and professional learning, awareness of one’s strengths and weaknesses, navigation of career opportunities, and networking to build relationships within and without one’s organization.	Shows an awareness of own strengths and areas for development. Identify areas for continual growth while pursuing and applying feedback. Develop plans and goals for one’s future career. Professionally advocate for oneself and others. Display curiosity; seek out opportunities to learn. Assume duties or positions that will help one progress professionally. Establish, maintain, and/or leverage relationships with people who can help one professionally. Seek and embrace development opportunities. Voluntarily participate in further education, training, or other events to support one’s career.
Communication	Clearly and effectively exchange information, ideas, facts, and perspectives with persons inside and outside of an organization.	Understand the importance of and demonstrate verbal, written, and non-verbal/body language abilities. Employ active listening, persuasion, and influencing skills. Communicate in a clear and organized manner so that others can effectively understand. Frame communication with respect to diversity of learning styles, varied individual communication abilities, and cultural differences. Ask appropriate questions for specific information from supervisors, specialists, and others. Promptly inform relevant others when needing guidance with assigned tasks.
Critical Thinking	Identify and respond to needs based upon an understanding of situational context and logical analysis of relevant information.	Make decisions and solve problems using sound, inclusive reasoning and judgment. Gather and analyze information from a diverse set of sources and individuals to fully understand a problem. Proactively anticipate needs and prioritize action steps. Accurately summarize and interpret data with an awareness of personal biases that may impact outcomes. Effectively communicate actions and rationale, recognizing the diverse perspectives and lived experiences of stakeholders. Multi-task well in a fast-paced environment.
Equity & Inclusion	Demonstrate the awareness, attitude, knowledge, and skills required to equitably engage and include people from different local and global cultures. Engage in anti-racist practices that actively challenge the systems, structures, and policies of racism.	Solicit and use feedback from multiple cultural perspectives to make inclusive and equity-minded decisions. Actively contribute to inclusive and equitable practices that influence individual and systemic change. Advocate for inclusion, equitable practices, justice, and empowerment for historically marginalized communities. Seek global cross-cultural interactions and experiences that enhance one’s understanding of people from different demographic groups and that leads to personal growth. Keep an open mind to diverse ideas and new ways of thinking. Identify resources and eliminate barriers resulting from individual and systemic racism, inequities, and biases. Demonstrate flexibility by adapting to diverse environments. Address systems of privilege that limit opportunities for members of historically marginalized communities.
Leadership	Recognize and capitalize on personal and team strengths to achieve organizational goals.	Inspire, persuade, and motivate self and others under a shared vision. Seek out and leverage diverse resources and feedback from others to inform direction. Use innovative thinking to go beyond traditional methods. Serve as a role model to others by approaching tasks with confidence and a positive attitude. Motivate and inspire others by encouraging them and by building mutual trust. Plan, initiate, manage, complete, and evaluate projects.
Professionalism	Knowing work environments differ greatly, understand and demonstrate effective work habits, and act in the interest of the larger community and workplace.	Act equitably with integrity and accountability to self, others, and the organization. Maintain a positive personal brand in alignment with organization and personal career values. Be present and prepared. Demonstrate dependability (e.g., report consistently for work or meetings). Prioritize and complete tasks to accomplish organizational goals. Consistently meet or exceed goals and expectations. Have an attention to detail, resulting in few if any errors in their work. Show a high level of dedication toward doing a good job.
Teamwork	Build and maintain collaborative relationships to work effectively toward common goals, while appreciating diverse viewpoints and shared responsibilities.	Listen carefully to others, taking time to understand and ask appropriate questions without interrupting. Effectively manage conflict, interact with and respect diverse personalities, and meet ambiguity with resilience. Be accountable for individual and team responsibilities and deliverables. Employ personal strengths, knowledge, and talents to complement those of others. Exercise the ability to compromise and be agile. Collaborate with others to achieve common goals. Build strong, positive working relationships with supervisor and team members/coworkers.
Technology	Understand and leverage technologies ethically to enhance efficiencies, complete tasks, and accomplish goals.	Navigate change and be open to learning new technologies. Use technology to improve efficiency and productivity of their work. Identify appropriate technology for completing specific tasks. Manage technology to integrate information to support relevant, effective, and timely decision-making. Quickly adapt to new or unfamiliar technologies. Manipulate information, construct ideas, and use technology to achieve strategic goals.