Across disciplines and programs at the University of Hawaiʻi at Hilo, we are implementing new workforce-related initiatives to keep current with the rapid pace of workforce needs and changes.
For example, this fall our College of Business and Economics is launching a new degree pathway, certificate program, courses, and concentrations that teach the technical skills needed for the use of artificial intelligence in business, governance, and science fields. AI is no longer an emerging technology, it’s how work gets done across almost every field.
Another example is the College of Arts and Sciences, where a faculty working group last academic year produced new career readiness materials. Clear definitions are now honed with career readiness meaning students develop the skills, experiences, and mindsets that enable them to adapt and grow in different work environments.
Holistically, this means courses, campus and community relationships, and personal and professional growth position students for long-term success in an unpredictable and dynamic future.
In Hawaiʻi, that success also means honoring our local and global communities, practicing cultural respect, and contributing to the well-being of Hawaiʻi and the wider world.
The core focus is on developing five primary skills in every student, often called “soft skills” or “durable skills” that include analytical and critical thinking; teamwork; ethics and professionalism; digital literacy; social, cultural, civic and global responsibility; and oral and written communication.
The college’s dean, Michael Bitter, notes that all college faculty have been asked to incorporate as much of the material as possible into their syllabi and class materials starting this fall. The focus is on our students developing these “competencies” not only for their major but also so that they can be successful in a variety of careers. These are the things that employers tell us they are looking for in our graduates, and, in fact, we’ve already been doing most of this work as part of our normal teaching.
What’s new is that we just haven’t always been describing our assignments and course work in terms of “career readiness.” This new focus is intended to change that by providing our faculty and students with a career readiness vocabulary that makes the value of the competencies more evident and intentional.
In addition to these types of changes, we are also reviewing all of our certificate programs across campus to ensure they are targeted toward preparing students for the careers of the future.
On this topic of career readiness, I’d also like to share that UH Hilo’s workforce-related initiatives are not limited to campus, there is also a strong community outreach component.
For example, Associate Professor of Communication Colby Miyose developed the Hawaiʻi Island Chamber of Commerce’s first-ever Student Speed Networking event that has become a bi-annual gathering, connecting students directly with local business leaders.
This chamber initiative, supported by the Office of the Chancellor, leads to internships and job offers for students, and we are currently in partnership with the HICC Young Professionals group to host the next speed networking event.
As we shift and strengthen our workforce development initiatives, we look to our past and current strengths while simultaneously staying not just current, but one step ahead of a rapidly changing workforce.
I mua,
Bonnie D. Irwin
Chancellor, UH Hilo
President-Elect, Hawaiʻi Island Chamber of Commerce