Student development plan
Business Professional Development advisors and faculty are here to help you navigate the student journey, including internship and job search processes. Below is a guide for your professional development over your four years at KU.
Connect with an advisor or AIMGrow your career potential
At the KU School of Business, you'll build professional excellence by developing four career competencies based on the National Association of Colleges and Employers (NACE) standards.
To graduate, students must earn the following four badges, each of which are tied to career competencies.
Year 1: (build the) NEST
Required points: 50
Business Professional Development course:
BUS 110 Intro to Professionalism
NACE career competencies gained: Community, Teamwork
What you'll do:
- Build your support network at KU
- Identify key resources and partners for your journey
- Explore student groups or organizations that match your interest
Year 2: HATCH (a plan)
Required points: 50
Business Professional Development course(s):
BUS 210 Career Management & Planning
230 course, dependent on your major(s):
- ACCT 230 Introduction to the Accounting Profession or
- BSAN 230 Introduction to Business Analytics and Information Systems Professions or
- FIN 230 Introduction to the Finance Profession or
- IST 230 Introduction to Business Analytics and Information Systems Professions or
- MGMT 230 Introduction to the Management Profession or
- MKTG 230 Introduction to the Marketing Profession or
- SCM 232 Introduction to Supply Chain Professions or
NACE career competencies gained: Career Development, Professionalism
What you'll do:
- Identify two to three potential academic and career plans of interest
- Find opportunities to deepen curiosities and answer unknowns
- Uncover knowledge/skill gaps, and build a plan to address them
Year 3: EXTEND (your wings)
Required points: 50
Business Professional Development course:
(If you didn't take it in year 2) 230 course, dependent on your major(s):
- ACCT 230 Introduction to the Accounting Profession or
- BSAN 230 Introduction to Business Analytics and Information Systems Professions or
- FIN 230 Introduction to the Finance Profession or
- IST 230 Introduction to Business Analytics and Information Systems Professions or
- MGMT 230 Introduction to the Management Profession or
- MKTG 230 Introduction to the Marketing Profession or
- SCM 232 Introduction to Supply Chain Professions
NACE career competencies gained: Critical Thinking, Technology
What you'll do:
- Try professional experiences around areas of interest
- Gain leadership opportunities or serve in a role of expertise somewhere of relevance
- Attain and begin tracking your experiential learning opportunities and develop industry-related skills
- Reflect and refine your interests and future goals
SOAR (into the future)
Requirement: Complete the Experiential Learning (SOAR) badge through your experiential learning component of 120 hours over at least 6 weeks total — get the details of what qualifies
NACE career competency gained: Leadership
What you'll do:
- Leverage remaining time and people on campus to maximize resources
- Build rapport with the School of Business as a network for a lifetime (mentorship, classes, etc.)
- Attain a first role that meets individualized professional values
- Complete KU's First Destination Survey to report your post-graduation status, giving future Jayhawks insights into their potential future plans