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Oct. 22 - Nov. 4, 2015
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Co-curriculars can give students a leg up in job market MICHAEL MELRO Sheridan College has been promoting co-curricular activities for students over the last four years. The co-curricular record (CCR) board now officially recognizes initiatives students take part in and has helped increase the employability of students after they graduate. The program’s leader says Sheridan College takes pride in the co-curricular programs it provides or that have been created by its student body. They provide great life experience and an opportunity to get involved with the college outside of the individual’s specific field of study. “Traditionally, when students would get involved with faculty activities or other initiatives outside the classroom, they would recognize it on their resume but they wouldn’t get any official recognition from the institution.” Christina Wiggins, project leader for Co-Curricular Records explained.
“Over the last four years, the CCR program has been recognizing those activities, through the designated website, that students can reach through Access Sheridan,” she said. Once people do the actual participation, if the activity is listed in the opportunities directory on the CCR website, they can request for that to be added to their record. At the end, a document can be printed and this page will have a Sheridan logo, authenticity code and a description of what they participated in. The goal is that now, these CCRs will be recognized by employers alongside your resume, diploma and other official documents. Two of the college’s most active co-curriculars are Toastmasters and Build for Better. Toastmasters International, a world-wide organization dedicated to the development of communication and leadership skills, is an example of a faculty-run CCR. It helps stu-
dents build confidence to become great leaders and Sheridan has its own chapter. To see Toastmasters in action, the first few sessions are free so students can observe. Visit sheridanbruins.toastmastersclubs. org for more information. Build for Better created by Sheridan Engineering student Hituvan Lachhar, in response to the horrific earthquake that hit Nepal in April. When Lachhar heard about the damage caused by the earthquake, the first thing he asked himself was, “What could I do?” “We design cheap, sustainable zero-energy required homes for the people of Nepal in cooperation with the Non-resident Nepali Association. Build for Better combines four majors, mechanical, architectural, electrical and environmental because we need to study everything possible about the country and what we can do,” he said. With more than 35 people working on the project, they
already have two established homes made from shipping containers, lined with bamboo that can withstand earthquakes and flooding and can last for 150 years. In the first four years, more than 4,000 students and faculty have visited the CCR website and as of April, more than 1,200 students have created their own records. “The program has been very successful. We have met our targets and it has continued to grow every year. We have been getting positive feedback from the students saying it is easy for them to engage in a co-curricular activity. They appreciated what the potential learning outcomes are and value that experience,” Wiggins said. CCRs are officially underway at 45 schools across Canada and Sheridan has had the advantage of being one of the first to develop their own. The college has been looked at as a leader in this new endeavour. “There’s been a few situations already where we
Hituvan Lachhar, Sheridan’s Build for Better creator. have been contacted by other schools who ask, ‘We’ve just started, what do we do’ and within the CCR community there is a sharing that is rare, that you won’t see in other places. It’s all to our benefit though, because employers will respect it more when organized,” Wiggins said. To get involved, contact Christina Wiggins and the other co-curricular representatives in D103 at Trafalgar Campus, or visit the website through Access Sheridan.