Seniors as Complete Graduates:
A Programmatic Approach from Kennesaw State University
http://www.kennesaw.edu/university_studies/sye/
Located in Kennesaw, GA – a suburb north of Atlanta
KENNESAW STATE UNIVERSITY (KSU) SENIOR YEAR EXPERIENCE
MISSION STATEMENT:
The mission of the Senior Year Experience is to provide KSU seniors with an opportunity to reflect on and
provide closure to their collegiate educational experience, demonstrate proficiency, develop the skills
necessary to successfully transition to and navigate post-university life, understand the civic and social
responsibilities of being college educated citizens and connect with KSU in an ongoing relationship.
The above mission statement is being met is through a 3 credit hour elective institutional capstone course,
KSU 4401: The Senior Seminar and by engaging in a variety of co-curricular experiences.
TEN KSU 4401: THE SENIOR SEMINAR COURSE LEARNING OUTCOMES:
1) Students will be able to make connections across courses and disciplines as they articulate the
personal and professional meaning of their collegiate educational experience. (knowledge, attitude
and skill outcome)
2)
Students will be aware of the variety of post-graduate choices available, what realistically awaits
them and will have set meaningful, specific and realistic goals to pursue their selected path.
(knowledge & skill outcome)
3) Students will have completed a self-assessment of their personal and professional skills (e.g
ethical leadership, decision-making, communication, interpersonal , problemsolving and technical) and developed an action plan to develop areas of weakness.
(knowledge & skill outcome)
4) Students will possess the tools needed to conduct an effective search for a career, graduate school
or other post-graduate choice (e.g resume writing, interviewing skills, etc.). (knowledge & skill
outcome)
5) Students will be familiar with the cycles of change and transition and will have acquired the
life skills (e.g financial planning, stress management, etc.) necessary to successfully make the
transition from college student to college graduate. (knowledge & skill outcome)
6) Students will understand the importance of civic and social responsibility and having a global
citizenship perspective. (knowledge & attitude outcome)
7) Students will have learned about the academic history and traditions surrounding commencement.
(knowledge outcome)
8) Students will be aware of and appreciate the resources, services and networking opportunities
dedicated to ensuring their success, not only while they are KSU seniors, but also after they exit
the institution. (knowledge outcome)
9) Students will understand the personal and communal benefits of being active KSU alumni and
know about the variety of ways in which they can become involved. (knowledge & attitude
outcome)
10)
Students will embrace the concept that as college graduates, learning does not commence when
they receive their degree, but rather it marks the beginning of a commitment and dedication to lifelong learning. (attitude outcome)
EXAMPLES OF KSU 4401 CLASSROOM ACTIVITIES AND COURSE ASSIGNMENTS:













Mock interviews
Resume preparation
Electronic portfolios
Senior mentoring of first-year students
Group project regarding alternative choices to beginning a traditional career path (e.g. entering the
military as an officer, joining the Peace Corps or working for a non-profit agency)
Stephen Covey’s “Eight habits of Highly Effective People”
Graduate School Exploration
Career Services Center presentations
Action timeline for making final semester and beyond plans
Community service project
Life skills (e.g. financial planning and stress management)
In depth look at issues of change and transition
Campus visits to the Alumni House, Small business Development Center and the Rare Book
Room (home of the KSU mace)
EXAMPLES OF CO-CURRICULAR SENIOR YEAR ACTIVITIES:
 SYE internship created to expand the SYE experience beyond the classroom
 Advise and work with a student group, the Senior Class Club, which exists to focus on issues
relevant to college seniors and promote school spirit

Partner with campus constituents inserted in promoting a successful transition for graduating
seniors (e.g. Alumni Affairs, the Career Services Center and Information Technology Services)
STUDENT ASSESSMENT:
 Students fill out a Survey Monkey instrument titled “Evaluation of KSU 4401 Learning
Outcomes” online. There are; a) ten likert scale questions pertaining to how well the Learning
Outcomes were met, b) several open-ended questions assessing the overall effectiveness of the
course, instructor and teaching materials and c) program specific questions that are changed from
semester to semester.

After two semesters of data collection, over 86% of the students indicated that they agreed or
strongly agreed that each of the ten learning outcomes were being met.

Informal assessment – testimony from KSU graduates regarding the helpfulness of the course in
preparing them for life after graduation. These graduates often come back to the classroom to
share their stories with the current seniors.
FACULTY ASSESSMENT:
 Faculty members fill out a “Learning Outcomes Assessment Record” prior to beginning the
semester stating their intended plans to meet the course learning outcomes.

At the end of the semester faculty members rate themselves on how well they feel they met each
of the learning outcomes and make notes about intended course changes for subsequent semesters.