Penn State Proposal: Goal-Setting Templates

Meghan JenningsDecember 3, 2015

Introduction

The Pennsylvania State University is home to over 45,000 students.

Roughly 11 percent of those students are undecided on their majors, while an

unidentifiable amount of those students are searching for more efficient ways to

reach their goals. While some find success on their own, others lack direction and a

clear idea of the specific stepping-stones they need to cross in order to make their

dreams a reality. While certainly not a life-or-death situation, the future happiness

and success of Penn State students may rest on how they go about planning and

reaching their goals during their time in college.

Already, thousands of students use Career Service’s vast resource bank for

guidance with job and internship searches, crafting the perfect resume, participating

in mock interviews, identifying their strengths, making connections with alumni, and

much more. In light of this, there isn’t a concrete technique for students who need a

little more clarity and direction planning their futures. There may be an idea of a

perfect job or end goal for many students, but there is also a need for a useful

planning method to help students really focus on executing the steps it takes to

reach their goals. Many students may have never learned how to plan or make

goals, and as the saying goes, “If you don’t know where you’re going, you’ll never

get there.”

For this reason, I propose that the Career Services facility provide a free

and comprehensive packet for students to concretely plan and organize their goals.

This will take the form of a flow chart, table, or other organizational diagram where

students can write down their biggest goals, break them into smaller plans, and

divide those into even smaller tasks they need to complete in order to reach the

goal. In addition, there can be a variety of different kinds of charts depending on

each student’s preference and learning style. This way, the students are able to

learn more about themselves while achieving their goals and forming superior

planning habits. These packets will not only provide an overview of the concept

behind goal-setting, but will also include online links, personal anecdotes from other

Penn State students, and helpful tips to begin thinking about personal improvement.

Planning for the future requires a lot of time and effort: forming goal-setting habits

early on may change someone’s daily routine, and could end up changing their life.

Analysis

How can accomplishing goals be made easier for Penn State students? By

putting it on paper. Career Services has the potential to help many students who are

struggling to move forward, who haven’t identified main interests and desires in their

lives, or who may be sitting on the fence about certain life decisions, not knowing

where to start. Though the packets will be used for academic and career goals, they

will be created in such a way that students can use it to accomplish goals in any

area of their lives, or even use a specific template for one particular area of interest

(i.e. fitness, education, budgeting). These planning packets will provide Penn State

students with a template for writing down, remembering, and implementing their

goals in order to smoothly and efficiently advance to where they want to be.

The packets will contain multiple copies of flow charts/graphs for writing

down goals, crossing them off, and making a visual aid for completing tasks. This

will also allow students to make copies if they choose. The packets will include a

page of links for goal-setting resources, personality information to choose the best-

suited options and methods for completing individual goals, and helpful tips to get

ambitious students a running start on their careers. A section of anecdotes, tips, and

success stories from previous Penn State students will also be included in the

packet.

The Career Services website lists several classes offered at the university

that provide the techniques and resources that help students plan out their careers

and transition into the workforce. But, according to Matt Ishler, the Associate

Director of Career Counseling and Planning at Penn State, there is no formal

template students can utilize to focus their aspirations. This packet, then, will be a

unique addition to the comprehensive network of resources already offered by the

Career Center. It has the potential to bridge the gap between discussing the future

and living it.

Implementing the goal template into the center will be relatively simple. There

will need to be an individual, or small team of contributors, working on the project.

Broadly, this team will need to take the following steps:

Research, choose, and create templates that are intuitive, visually appealing,

and specific

Search for online goal-setting resources and specific personality information

that relate to planning styles and achievement

Gather information from current Penn State students (tips for goal-setting and

achievement, success stories, impressions of the Career Center)

Combine this information into a readable, intuitive, and attractive packet

This part of the process will realistically take one to three months. Throughout the

research and planning process, either the individual or the team will need to meet

with other staff to track the progress of the project.

Once a draft packet is complete, there will need to be a comprehensive

discussion regarding packet logistics. This will include meetings about the Career

Center’s budgeting limitations, how often to print the packets, how to increase

student awareness about the packets as a resource, where they will be located in

the Career Center, and if there will be an online version of the packet or templates.

After the packets are introduced to the center, the team and staff will need to

plan meetings to evaluate the success of the packets. Additionally, student stories

and Career Service information will need to be periodically updated for accuracy.

Recommendation

Penn State is only as successful as its students. I recommend that the Career

Center implement a method for all incoming and presiding students that will allow

them to become more focused, action-oriented, and methodical about planning their

futures. This method will take the form of goal-template packets. Having a resource

geared towards setting and achieving goals will allow students to get into the habit of

planning, writing, and completing tasks in order to improve their lives.

The Career Service’s online “About” page details some of the goals Career

Services has itself: “Programs and resources are provided to assist students and

alumni in crystallizing and specifying career goals, expanding knowledge of career

alternatives, understanding effective decision making, and acquiring appropriate

strategies and skills to carry out the process.”

Providing students with goal template packets will align with Career Service’s

goals, it will help with student achievement, and will also provide a unique

opportunity for students who want more action and direction during their time in and

out of Penn State. This initiative will result in more success for the students, more

success for Career Services, and more success for the entire Penn State

community.

Works Cited

"Welcome." Penn State Career Services. Web. 22 Nov. 2015.

<http://studentaffairs.psu.edu/career/about/>.