Did you know that there are some things that college students can do while in college that can help them enjoy workplace engagement and a meaningful life after college? We’d like to talk about that over the next six weeks.
A recent poll of nearly 30,000 college graduates conducted jointly by Purdue University and Gallup, Inc. looked at the relationship between college experiences and college graduates’ lives post-graduation. The study examined workplace engagement and graduates’ sense of well-being as well as factors influencing students’ life while in college.
According to the results of this study, six factors emerged as important influences on graduates’ engagement and well-being. Graduates who responded positively to the following six statements had a greater chance of experiencing strong workplace engagement and well-being after college.
(Support)
- I had at least one professor at [College] who made me excited about learning.
- My professors at [College] cared about me as a person.
- I had a mentor who encouraged me to pursue my goals and dreams.
(Experiential)
- I worked on a project that took a semester or more to complete.
- I had an internship or job that allowed me to apply what I was learning in the classroom.
- I was extremely active in extracurricular activities and organizations while attending [College].
For the next six Mondays, our series, College Experiences That Lead to Well-Being After Graduation will examine these factors. Students need to take control of their college experiences to make sure that they participate in the activities in college which will help them in the future.
Colleges certainly have responsibility to provide these potential experiences, but students need to take advantage of the options. According to the Gallup-Purdue study, the type of schools graduates attend — public or private, small or large, very selective or less selective, hardly matters at all to the outcomes of this study. Students’ actions and attitudes can transform their college years into productive foundations for the future.
We hope parents will read this series of articles and share these ideas with their college students.
Please join us for the first article in the series on Monday, July7.
Read more about the Gallup-Purdue study.
https://www.gallup.com/poll/168848/life-college-matters-life-college.aspx
