NSU Horizons Spring 2018

21 NSU HORIZONS “We know that the 21st-century student is different. We know career paths are different. We know that technology and instant information in the age of 24/7 connectivity in- fluences all of us,” said Brad Williams, Ph.D., vice president of student affairs and dean of the College of Undergraduate Studies. To help students prepare for a competitive future, Williams said that universities “need to be shifting from traditions and offer, especially undergraduates, opportuni- ties that will prepare students through educational practices that will benefit them beyond the university experience.” Beyond internships and other ad hoc types of learning outside the classroom, experiential education has taken a purposeful turn at NSU. Undergraduates must complete six units of ExEL for graduation. These ExEL-designated experiences are classified as curricular—that is, related directly to an academic course or cocurricular activity. Cocurricular activities or programs include travel explora- tion, community engagement, faculty-mentored research, and professional growth. Teri Triguba Williams, Ph.D., NSU’s director for ExEL, said that students begin with a required first-year seminar and end their undergraduate experience with a senior capstone project. Both curricular experiences provide them with solid framework for their undergraduate journey. “Preparing our students for a competitive world through the best practices of ExEL is our desired outcome,” she said. “Rather than something that just ‘happens’ to be part of education, the students will develop intentional and mean- ingful learning opportunities that will be highlighted in an experiential portfolio in their senior year. The ExEL port- folio is a valuable tool students will be able to customize to their ultimate career and life goals,” said Triguba Williams. EARLY EXPERIENCES AT NSU Activities during the students’ first-year seminar involve “pillars of opportunity,” as Triguba Williams refers to them, in which undergraduates participate in hands-on activities within many of the school’s colleges. For example, freshman biology major Maya Martin, who has her sights set on attending the College of Pharmacy as part of NSU’s Dual Admission Program, said the ExEL experience “strength- ened my passion for pharmacy.” ExEL exposed Martin and other undergraduate students to the inner workings of pharmacy. They made a compound of lip balm in the pharmaceutics lab, then participated in patient counseling technique in the patient care manage- ment laboratory, where they observed and assessed a patient and presented a treatment plan. The ExEL program puts students in positions to both try new experiences to find their path in life and to expand their practical experience in their chosen field, through hands-on exposure, field work, travel, and research. The goal is to provide immersive experiences that better prepare students for success after graduation. continued on page 22