Preparing Students for Future Career Success: New Career Series Launches at Trent University

October 10, 2018

RBC Future Launch donates $85,000 to help create Skills, Jobs & Everything in Between series

Career experience and future success for students is the goal of a new speaker series launching at Trent University this week and supported by an $85,000 funding infusion from the RBC Future Launch program.

The ten-part Skills, Jobs & Everything in Between series will provide Trent students with support, and inspiration, to be career ready after graduation. Reflective of the University’s commitment to provide every Trent student with a guaranteed, meaningful, purposeful and recorded experiential learning experience, the collaborative series will highlight partnerships with local business owners who can offer their expertise and on-the-ground workforce experiences to students.

“Through the generosity of RBC’s Future Launch program, students participating in this series can gain insights into the jobs of tomorrow – especially the knowledge and skills necessary to start their own business,” said Dr. Tom Phillips, interim director of the Co-op, Careers and Experiential Learning at Trent University. “The Skills, Jobs & Everything in Between series will focus on the combination of three I’s – inspiration, information and interaction – and will complement Trent’s efforts to offer guaranteed experiential learning opportunities to all students. There is a natural link from experiential learning to careers that Trent supports through its careers-related programming and services, and its experiential learning opportunities. RBC’s Future Launch program is a welcome addition to helping students prepare for the workplace of the future.”

Topics to be covered by visiting speakers and experts include soft-skills development and workplace expectations, entrepreneurship and small business development, personal finance, and using labour market to explore workforce opportunities. The series will include an emphasis on Indigenous youth career paths, and gets underway October 10 with an introductory session for all students.

“Looking at career opportunities after graduating can be a daunting task for young people today but thanks to RBC’s Future Launch program, Trent students and our young alumni will have the chance to consider some clear options for their own careers and entrepreneurial opportunities,” said Sherry Booth, director of philanthropy at Trent. “We are exceptionally appreciative of RBC’s philanthropic investment into the futures of our students and alumni.”

The Skills, Jobs & Everything in Between series is a partnership between Trent University’s new Centre for Entrepreneurship and Social Innovation, to be located in the transformed Bata Library, and the Co-op, Careers and Experiential Learning department.

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