Experiential Badges

Collect badges. Build your story.

Contact career360@smu.ca for more information
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Experiential Badges Collect badges. Build your story. Contact career360@smu.ca for more information
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Digital Experiential Badges

Through Experiential Badges, students can celebrate the skills, achievements, and growth they gain through experiential learning opportunities during their degree. Each badge highlights their competencies, making it easy to share accomplishments with employers, graduate schools, and professional networks.

Badges are recorded on the Student Experience Record and can be earned throughout the academic journey, reflecting each student’s commitment to continuous learning, active engagement, and personal growth.

Badge Categories

  • Career Explorer
  • EDIA Champion
  • Entrepreneurship
  • Community Leader
  • Sport Leader

Explore the boxes below for a closer look at each badge category.

Badge Levels

Students can progress through different levels within each badge category.

  • Bronze: at least five unique experiential opportunities.
  • Silver: at least ten unique experiential opportunities.
  • Gold: at least fifteen unique experiential opportunities.
  • Platinum: at least twenty unique experiential opportunities. Students will also receive a signed certificate of completion.

*Unique experiential opportunities: each experience with the same title can only be counted once toward your badges.

How to Earn a Badge

  • Track your experiences through Career360° in the following modules:
    • Co-Curricular Recognition (CCR)
    • Community Service Learning (CSL)
    • Co-operative Education (Co-op)
    • Micro Experiential Learning (MEL)
    • Student Employment Initiative (SEI)
      *Students can explore the Student Guide box below for instructions on how to add and validate experiences.
  • Each experience will be validated by the Experiential Learning Office.
  • Eligible CCR Experiences are automatically applied toward the corresponding badge. Students can choose a different badge by responding to the badge question in the reflection section.

Explore the boxes below for a closer look at each badge category, instructions for students, and FAQ's

Career Explorer Badge

Students will learn how to articulate the skills and experiences developed throughout their degree in a resumé and cover letter, and how to present their knowledge, skills, and abilities in an interview. Benefits and outcomes of the Career Explorer Badge:

  • Refining awareness of one’s own potential.
  • Connecting with employers and community partners.
  • Improving employability by learning vocational skills.
  • Exploring and improving interpersonal skills and self-development skills.

Anticipated Competencies: Continuous Learning, Accountability, Self-Reflection, Creative Thinking, Technology Skills

Example experiences:

EDIA Champion

Students engage in practices that challenge the status quo, promote social justice and the inclusion of diverse groups. The EDIA badge offers:

  • Strategies for navigating sensitive issues related to diversity and inclusion.
  • Training to increase awareness around topics related to mental health and wellness, sexual violence harassment and prevention, accessible and inclusive spaces, etc.
  • Developing self-reliance, independence, and resiliency.
  • Creating a framework to overcome personal ignorance, prejudice, apathy and fear.

Anticipated Competencies: Equity and Inclusion, Self-Reflection, Resiliency, Respectfulness, Mentoring

Example Experiences:

Entrepreneurship Badge

Students learn how to identify, create, and evaluate new business ideas, and understand the key areas of a business plan to be able to make a pitch to an audience. Benefits and outcomes of the Entrepreneurship badge:

  • Increasing self-confidence by successfully setting and achieving a goal.
  • Developing your entrepreneurial communication skills.
  • Exploring and improving interpersonal skills and self-development skills.
  • Achieving satisfaction by overcoming challenges and obstacles.
  • Improving planning and organization ability and attention to details.
  • Learning to make real decisions and accept real consequences.

Anticipated Competencies: Strategic Approach; Planning, Coordination, & Implementation; Creative Thinking; Problem Solving; Resourcefulness

Example Experiences:

Community Leader Badge

Students demonstrate exceptional leadership skills and learn how to showcase their growth and development through self-reflection and critical thinking exercises while engaging in the betterment of the campus and community. The Leadership badge offers:

  • Accepting the responsibility of commitment to others.
  • Enhancing leadership qualities.
  • Forming a lifelong habit of community involvement.
  • Making a real difference to the lives of others.
  • Ways to showcase and articulate your leadership skills and knowledge.

Anticipated Competencies: Initiative, Collaboration & Teamwork, Visioning, Mentoring, Accountability

Example Experiences:

Sport Leader Badge

Student athletes develop through sporting, essential life and work skills, such as communication, organization and working with others and, at the same time, making a positive contribution to the community. The Sport Leadership badge offers:

  • Developing a healthy lifestyle.
  • Enhancing network and community commitment.
  • Experiencing a sense of achievement.
  • Increasing self-esteem.

Anticipated Competencies: Time Management; Decision Making; Collaboration & Teamwork; Visioning; Accountability.

Example Experiences:

Co-Curricular Recognition

  1. Log in to https://career360.smu.ca with your @smu.ca email address and password.
  2. From the main menu, select Co-Curricular Recognition then My CCR Experiences.
  3. Click Add an Experience. Search for a position by typing in the name or navigate through the selection boxes to narrow down your results.
  4. Click Add CCR Position to My Experience Record.
  5. Under Record Position Details, select Edit Reflection Then Add Reflection. Answer the three reflection questions. Under Experiential Badge Recognition, select the experiential badge category that best describes your Experience. Log Hours and select Competencies accordingly. Click Save Changes.

Community Service Learning

  1. Log in to https://career360.smu.ca with your @smu.ca email address and password.
  2. From the main menu, select Community Service Learning then your CSL Course.
  3. Follow step instructions as provided in your course. Under the Track Hours step, complete the # of hours, date, and reflection question. Under Experiential Badge Recognition, select the experiential badge category that best describes your Experience. Click Submit.

Micro Experiential Learning

  1. Log in to https://career360.smu.ca with your @smu.ca email address and password.
  2. From the main menu, select Micro EL then your Micro EL Course.
  3. Follow step instructions as provided in your course. Under the Track Hours step, complete the # of hours, date, and reflection question. Under Experiential Badge Recognition, select the experiential badge category that best describes your Experience. Click Submit.

Co-operative Education

  1. Log in to https://career360.smu.ca with your @smu.ca email address and password.
  2. From the main menu, select Co-op then your Co-op Record.
  3. On your Work Term Record, Select View Related Forms then Student Post Reflection. Under Experiential Badge Recognition, select the experiential badge category that best describes your Experience. Click Submit.

Student Employment Initiative

  1. Log in to https://career360.smu.ca with your @smu.ca email address and password.
  2. From the main menu, select Student Employment Initiative then your SEI Record.
  3. On your Work Term Record, Select View Related Forms then Student Post Reflection. Under Experiential Badge Recognition, select the experiential badge category that best describes your Experience. Click Submit.

 

 

Grid of badge levels