Canadian Undergraduates' Reports of Co-curricular Involvement Across the Degree

Abstract

The study discussed in this article investigated university student beliefs and behaviours with respect to co-curricular activities among incoming (n=983), mid-degree (n=173), and graduating (n=1006) students. When asked about their most significant learning experiences during their time at university, graduating students were more likely to report on co-curricular activities than those related to coursework. However, participation in co-curricular activities was not related to graduating students' feelings of preparedness to undertake a job search or apply for postgraduate education. Incoming students reported clear intentions to participate in some types of co-curricular activities (e.g., volunteering, intramural sports, clubs) but were more uncertain about others (e.g., events or activities related to global awareness, or diversity and inclusion). Parallel findings were observed with respect to actual co-curricular involvement among mid-degree and graduating students. This research is discussed in the context of university efforts to promote co-curricular activities to students in order to develop career ready transferrable skills, and the relevance of particular patterns of involvement to the current job market. KEYWORDS co-curricular, undergraduates, experiential, career preparation, transferrable skills CO-CURRICULAR INVOLVEMENT Research concerning the postsecondary experience has provided considerable evidence to support the importance of student engagement while completing an undergraduate diploma or degree (Bonet & Walters, 2016; Kuh, Cruce, Shoup, Kinzie, & Gonyea, 2008). While much of this literature is focused on engagement within the formal curriculum (i.e., in the context of for-credit courses), more recently researchers have also noted that student engagement in activities outside of courses may also be important or potentially more important than what is studied within courses or programs (Bass, 2012). Some institutions have dedicated resources to developing these out of the classroom experiences in a more formalized integrated way, referring to them as a co-curriculum. Elias (2014, p. viii) has defined the co-curriculum as consisting of

Beyond the Classroom: Enhancing Career Clarity and Preparedness Through Volunteer Psychoeducational Group Facilitation for Behavioral Health Undergraduates

“…Borwein (2014) suggested that community-based volunteer experiences may be seen as important for entry-level positions at a time when less than 25% of employers are willing to consider job applicants with no related experience. External career-related opportunities, such as field education experiences and co-curricular activities, enhance career preparedness in social work fields (Beddoe et al, 2018;Martini et al, 2019). Students with hands-on experience are better equipped to identify their desired future roles, positively affecting their motivation, willingness, and performance (Inceoglu et al, 2019).…”

“…These outcomes can be found through service-learning, co-curricular, or volunteer experiences identified as high-impact practices by the Association 2007). High-impact practices are defined as those experiences that help undergraduates develop realworld skills through hands-on applied learning (Martini et al, 2019). To date, however, there are few studies that explore the correlation between these high-impact practices and feelings of career clarity and preparedness (Martini et al, 2019).…”

A comprehensive, iterative, and integrated model for developing psychology workforce literacy.

“…Students do not automatically recognize how experiences and assignments are related to the development of the skills needed for professional success (Halonen & Dunn, 2018; Martini et al, 2015), and many students do not have the language needed to articulate the skills they do have (Martini et al, 2019). Thus, in addition to assessing interests and work values, students should regularly assess the development of knowledge and skills included in Guidelines 2.0 and valued by employers.…”

From Engineering Students to Student Engineers: Reflections, Identity, and Positioning in Co-curricular Activities

“…There is a growing body of literature examining students' involvement in co-curricular activities [4,16]. Elias [17] has defined co-curriculars as comprising "university-affiliated activities that are outside the academic curricula and provide opportunities for intentional learning and development" (p. viii).…”

“…[1,3,18]. As suggested by previous researchers, co-curricular involvement has been linked to a range of positive student outcomes, including: career-related professional skills acquisition and competencies developed, such as communication, leadership, and teamwork [3,5,16], academic achievement and persistence [19], ethical development [18], and cognitive development [20,21]. Students, for example, are aware of the importance of co-curricular experiences in their future employment [22].…”