CSU-Global Campus Partners with Skillful

On March 17, 2016, Colorado State University-Global Campus joined hundreds of local students, government officials, community leaders, and education providers at the national launch of Skillful held at the Emily Griffith Technical College in Denver, Colorado.  Skillful, a new career platform, creates collaboration between educational providers, job seekers, and companies. The platform’s purpose is to aggregate resources, and ultimately broaden the employment discussion to include skills, rather than degrees-only. As part of the pilot program, CSU-Global joined forces with founding partners LinkedIn and the Markle Foundation on this groundbreaking initiative.  

One of the Skillful kickoff event’s attendees was Jeff Wasden, president of the Colorado Business Roundtable, a local business advocacy organization. “This new platform will transform the job search,” said Wasden. “From a business perspective, we are excited to have a tool that will assist local businesses in finding the right talent, with the right skills, to help businesses continue to grow the economy.” 

The most innovative aspect of this partnership is the LinkedIn training finder, which creates a direct link between jobs, skills, and employers. This tool allows job seekers to view current openings, skills required, and educational programs for the required skills. CSU-Global’s certificate programs are listed there. For each course listed, the site indicates which companies have direct relationships with the program. This includes being on an advisory board, informing curriculum, providing internships, or directly hiring from the program. 

“Our Skillful and LinkedIn partnership fits with CSU-Global’s skill-based learning focus,” said Takeda-Tinker. “Our coursework teaches students industry-identified skillsets, which we track using endorsements and awards. This makes it easy for students to add these valuable skills to their resumes, LinkedIn profiles, and demonstrate value to their current employers.”  

Similar to the training finder, CSU-Global works with affiliates to complement its programs. The university utilizes programmatic advisory boards comprised of industry experts and hiring managers to obtain industry insight from the field, and uses this feedback to refine and assess courses biannually. Importantly, these boards identify key skills that industries require. These skills have been identified and integrated into the LinkedIn training finder, allowing job seekers to view CSU-Global programs and specific outcomes. 

At CSU-Global, students can pursue Certificates of Completion, in addition to bachelor and master’s degrees. These short programs, typically consisting of five courses, are also aligned with Skillful’s initiative by focusing on short-term, skill-based learning, rather than traditional bachelor’s and master’s degree programs.  

“Our Certificate of Completion program allows students to gain new skills and qualifications without committing to a full degree program,” said Dr. Becky Takeda-Tinker, CSU-Global Campus president. 

An additional functionality of the Skillful platform is the ability to search for training programs and potential careers by sector, view career earning potential, and see local in-demand jobs and employment rates. Other resources include interview tutorials, free career coaching, and a skill-mapping tool that connects your abilities to potential careers. The site also hosts a job personality quiz, and a list of local career-oriented events. 

For more information about CSU-Global’s online certificate programs, click here. For more information about Skillful, click here.