Laurier Experience Record helps students track development of transferable skills

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The memorable moments and transformational experiences we have in our lives are often the most documented. The Experience Record offered at Laurier makes collecting the meaningful experiences you’ll have throughout your academic life easy.

Life as a Golden Hawk is far more than classes, essays and exams. There are going to be opportunities to learn and grow outside the classroom and through hands-on experiences in-class and on-campus. To make the most of your university education, you need a place to reflect on what you learn inside the classroom and connect it to meaningful experiences you have in other learning environments, then show potential employers how it rounds out your qualifications. This is where the Laurier Experience Record (LER) comes in.

The LER gives you the tools to track the skills you've developed and competencies you’ve gained through co-op terms, volunteer opportunities, workplace projects and more. The LER documents your experiential learning activities and captures your personal reflections on your experiences and achievements, while helping you understand the knowledge and skills you have developed and how these may relate to potential career options.

Over the course of your degree, you can capture all of your experiential learning accomplishments in the LER, including:

• Co-op work terms;
• Involvement with student government and campus clubs and associations;
• Campus and community volunteer opportunities;
• Non-credit certificates and programs;
• On-campus employment;
• Community service-learning courses, where students apply classroom learning through engagement with local organizations; and
• Workplace projects and activities.

You can explore the nearly 500 opportunities available in the Laurier Experience Catalogue.

“Co-op is often the first thing that comes to mind when we say ‘experiential,’ but it’s important to realize that co-op represents one of hundreds of opportunities for us to connect students to engaging experiences that may help shape their future,” said Jan Basso, assistant vice-president of Experiential Learning and Career Development.

Your Experience Record demonstrates that you have been involved and reflective as a Laurier student. It provides a verified record of your engagement with experiential learning opportunities, which becomes useful when applying for on-campus opportunities, jobs after graduation, or graduate school.

Laurier is the first institution in Canada to launch a comprehensive record that encompasses all of your experiential learning engagement. Golden Hawks also have access to MyDegree, an online tool that tracks your degree progress and shows you how many – and which – steps you need to take to reach the convocation stage.