Ripon College Catalyst Curriculum

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CATALYST THE FIVE­-COURSE CONCENTRATION IN APPLIED INNOVATION

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The Catalyst Advantage

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Introduction to Catalyst

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Catalyst Course Descriptions

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The Applied Innovation Seminar

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Career and Professional Development

Catalyst ensures students are able to complete multiple majors and minors, study abroad and hold internships in four years.

Ripon College’s five-course curriculum, Catalyst, rigorously develops the 21st-century skills that employers seek while streamlining the path to graduation.

Students enjoy extensive freedom to pursue their passions and craft their own academic program of study. Catalyst culminates with an applied innovation seminar in which small teams of students work with faculty mentors to develop creative solutions to problems of global significance in a real-world context. Every graduate completing Catalyst earns a Concentration in Applied Innovation.

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RIPON COLLEGE GRADUATION REQUIREMENTS CHECKLIST n Concentration in Applied Innovation (20 Catalyst Credits) n Completed Major n 124 TOTAL CREDITS

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Graduates who complete the Catalyst curriculum earn a Concentration in Applied Innovation.

Catalyst consists of five seminars, two in the first year, two in the sophomore year, and the problem-solving seminar in the junior year. The first four seminars are designed to develop the essential skills students need to work collaboratively and independently in the junior seminar, in which they will work in teams mentored by faculty members as they develop and present proposed solutions to large, open­-ended questions. The seminars also provide grounding in some basic collegelevel academic skills and expose students to a range of disciplinary approaches. Graduates who complete the Catalyst curriculum earn a Concentration in Applied Innovation, which documents on the transcript that a graduate has mastered the skills of oral communication, writing, critical thinking, collaboration, quantitative reasoning, information literacy, integration and intercultural competence.

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CATALYST 110: Writing

Information Literacy Oral Communication Collaboration Writing

CATALYST 120: Quantitative Reasoning CATALYST 210: Intercultural Competence CATALYST 220: Interdisciplinary Integration

Critical Thinking Information Literacy Oral Communication Collaboration Writing Critical Thinking Collaboration Writing Information Literacy Oral Communication Collaboration Writing

CATALYST 300: Applied Innovation Seminar

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of employers prioritize skills that will help their employees contribute to innovation in the workplace.

of employers say a capacity to think critically, communicate clearly, and solve complex problems is more important than the undergraduate major.

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Catalyst is student­-centered, ensuring high quality instruction from tenure-­track faculty that delivers the tools needed to impact the world. Nothing is required as part of the Catalyst curriculum that does not directly contribute to skill development.

CATALYST SKILL DEVELOPMENT Writing Collaboration Information Literacy Oral Communication Quantitative Reasoning Intercultural Competence Integration Critical Thinking

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CATALYST 110: WRITING This seminar emphasizes foundational skills in written communication essential to success in college. The primary objective of the seminar is to develop the basic writing and research skills students need in order to successfully navigate specific expectations in other courses and applied contexts. Students write several major essays related to the theme of the seminar. At least three of these projects involve significant revision and peer review, during which students will hone interpersonal oral communication skills and practice collaboration.

CATALYST 120: QUANTITATIVE REASONING This seminar emphasizes foundational skills in reasoning and quantitative literacy. The primary objectives are to develop basic skills in evaluating numerical claims and, when appropriate, using quantitative data to construct logically sound arguments. Students develop skills in critical analysis, specifically deductive thinking and/or scientific method.

Students will complete several required writing assignments emphasizing skills that both evaluate and construct quantitative claims. Each student also will prepare, practice and perform at least one oral presentation related to the topic of the seminar.

CATALYST 210: INTERCULTURAL COMPETENCE This seminar provides all students foundational skills in intercultural competency and further develops skills in writing and critical analysis, with a particular focus on identifying and challenging biases and assumptions. Students will become attentive to the ways in which their own cultural assumptions shape perception and begin to develop awareness of and empathy for the worldviews of other cultures. They will be able to describe how power and oppression shape the meaning of cultural differences and situate their own cultural identity within these relations.

CATALYST 220: INTERDISCIPLINARY INTEGRATION Students are prompted to connect examples, facts or theories from more than one discipline in order to diagnose problems and explore issues from different perspectives.

Students collaboratively employ at least two distinct disciplinary approaches in order to propose solutions to a defined problem. Students will develop techniques to orally present information to an audience, including appropriate language choices, awareness of audience reception and some comfort with public speaking. Students must rehearse and perform to the class at least one substantial presentation in which they present an argument using media and visual components designed to be effective for a particular audience.

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As part of the Applied Innovation Seminar, faculty mentors will guide students in using the skills they developed at the 100 and 200 levels to examine real-world problems.

CATALYST 300: APPLIED INNOVATION SEMINAR Teams of students collaborate in development of strategies to address large, open-­ended problems, mentored by faculty members from across the liberal arts. Student teams present their proposals at a public forum near the end of the semester. The seminar requires engaging in independent research, developing a clearly defined approach, analyzing both evidence and proposed solutions, and working effectively with a diverse group. While each team is supervised by a faculty member, the majority of the work for this seminar is expected to be done autonomously in order to demonstrate mastery of applied innovation skills in ways that prepare graduates for independent work after college.

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96%

of Ripon College alumni are employed, in graduate school or student-teaching within six months of graduating.

FOUR-YEAR CAREER AND PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT PLAN Career and professional development is embedded within the Concentration in Applied Innovation. Strong ties exist with the College’s alumni office to foster networking and bolster opportunities for students to connect with alumni and employers through Alumni Career Days, Master Chats and Ripon’s award­-winning Career Discovery Tour program. n

Meet with Career and Professional Development staff

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Staff work with faculty advisors to assess skill-building within majors/minors

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Introduction to the Career Dashboard

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Upload career profile

Career Dashboard reflects declaration of major and associated skills necessary to accomplish student’s stated goals

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Staff meet with students to discuss experiential learning internship opportunities to bolster skill set and provide experience

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Students are invited to specific programming to present options available for skill development

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Students learn employability skills through thoughtfully designed workshops and interactive opportunities to connect with employers and alumni through events like Alumni Career Day, Ripon’s award-winning Career Discovery Tours and more

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Students have access to specially designed career launch activities and workshops that focus on résumés, interviews, job searches and networking

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Staff work to prepare students to make connections for successful transition to post-Ripon College experiences

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Reflection resources provide students with meaningful ways to incorporate internship experience into their academic plan

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300 West Seward Street Ripon, Wisconsin 54971 800-947-4766 | adminfo@ripon.edu

Learn more at ripon.edu/catalyst

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