The Career Guidance Unit, was set up to support the Students, Academia and Professional Staff for their career development a. b. c. d. e. f.
Action plan - Skill Development and CGU Committee
Terms of Reference
The following report is submitted as part of the Strategic Plan of the Faculty of Management and Finance, for the period 2015 – 2019 to convey the action plan for Skill Development and CGU Committee (referred to herein as ‘the committee’). Action plan for the activities (as stipulated in the Strategic Plan for 2015-2019)
1. Promo
te entrepreneurial experience
a. Enterprise Based Project
Enterprise Based Project which is currently conducted as part of the curriculum will be continued to be utilized as the primary facilitator of entrepreneurial talent among undergraduates of the faculty. The committee proposes the following enhancements to improve the effectiveness of the Enterprise Based Project. EBP teams to be assigned to selected corporate partners in order to obtain expert knowledge in developing and promoting the product ideas. Corporate Sponsorships/agreements to be provided for selected teams to obtain long term support and initial financial assistance. Facilitate collaborations with other Small and Medium scale enterprises to form long term corporate partnerships.
2. Enhance soft skills emphasizing professionalism with the help of industry
Language Competency is recognized as one of the primary constraints for undergraduates and the committee proposes the following sub-activities to rectify the issue. A language course which spans across 4 years, will be offered with the assistance of the course facilitators of IHRA. In order to develop soft skills which are important in the organizational context, students will be attending a model assessment centre conducted by KPMG-Sri Lanka. A series of training sessions /guest lectures will also be organized by the committee to enhance the leadership and communication skills of the students. The sessions will be primarily funded by the respective corporate organization with limited funds being required (refreshments for guests, providing hall facilities) from internal funds. The aforementioned workshops/sessions will be similar to the events conducted by John Keells and Unilever in 2015. Already, CIM started the first event of such training series.
3. Facilitate Community Based Learning
a. The primary tool that will be used to enhance community based learning will be the already existing ‘Community Development Project’ of the curriculum. As part of the new developments initial introductory session will be conducted with the inclusion of social entrepreneurs whose experience will be used to explain various avenues available for students to learn and serve the community around them. As further extension of the above project, the committee wishes to partner student groups with industry representatives to allow students to work alongside organizational CSR/Sustainability initiatives of the respective organization. This is expected to allow students to gain exposure in to the social responsibility element of the business.
4. Provide opportunity for industry exposure
a. The committee has already collaborated with the curriculum revisions committee to extend the period of the industrial training up to 1 year and this is expected to enhance the industry exposure of the students extensively. In order to prepare students for the challenges in seeking and securing quality employment opportunities, the committee proposes to continue the existing practices of conducting the pre-career fair counseling sessions and the annual career fair of the faculty. The committee maintains database of employers and wishes to increase the number of organizations attending the career fairs. Further the committee wishes to utilize the database to maintain close contacts with the organizations, so that vacancy announcements (full time/part time/project based) can be published for students’ notice. The committee has already initiated the development of the web page for the career guidance unit, under the faculty web site and plans on keeping it up-to-date. Currently communications are done through the facebook, sms alert, email and student notice board. Apart from the ‘agreements on internships’ signed/planned to be signed, with organizations such as DIMO and Ceylon To***co, the committee plans on entering into more MOUs/agreements to secure positions for undergraduates and recent graduates of the faculty. Mentors are to be assigned from the industry.
5. Identify and design a student competency development program
a. The committee has already established the ‘competency development committee’ whose primary goal is to identify and report on the competency gap of the undergraduates when compared with the demand of the industry. The committee has already engaged with;
i. Discussions with MBA alumni
ii. Discussion with academic staff,
and plans on discussing competencies of the undergraduates in specific academic departments with the representatives of the same career field. Once the competency gap is clearly identified the committee will propose methods of developing the competencies of the students.
