How Kalamazoo College’s Institutional Learning Outcomes connect with NACE Career Readiness Competencies
The National Association of Colleges and Employers (NACE) defines career readiness as the foundation for workplace success and lifelong career development. Career readiness at K is grounded in the liberal arts and the K‑Plan, helping students learn, reflect, and apply knowledge across diverse experiences.
K’s four Institutional Learning Outcomes (ILOs) articulate the essential abilities every graduate should demonstrate, and they align closely with the eight NACE Career Readiness Competencies recognized by employers across industries.
Kalamazoo College Institutional Learning Outcomes
Graduates of Kalamazoo College are expected to:
- Communicate Effectively
- Address Complex Problems
- Collaborate Successfully
- Demonstrate Intercultural Competency
Direct Alignments Between ILOs and NACE Competencies:
At the institutional level, each ILO connects most directly to a primary NACE competency:
- Communicates Effectively → Communication
- Address Complex Problems → Critical Thinking (including problem-solving and application)
- Collaborates Successfully → Teamwork
- Demonstrates Intercultural Competency → Equity & Inclusion
These relationships provide a shared language for describing how a K education prepares students for the world beyond the classroom.
Competency‑by‑Competency Alignment With Context
Communicate Effectively
Aligned NACE Competency: Communication
NACE emphasizes clear, effective, and adaptable communication across written, verbal, and digital formats. K develops this outcome through writing‑intensive courses, presentations, collaborative work, and communication support across campus units.
What this means for students:
You learn to express ideas clearly, confidently, and across multiple contexts.
Address Complex Problems
Aligned NACE Competency: Critical Thinking
NACE highlights the ability to identify, analyze, and respond to complex issues using evidence and sound reasoning. At K, this outcome is strengthened through interdisciplinary learning, research, the SIP, and structured reflection across the curriculum.
What this means for students:
You develop strong analytical and problem‑solving abilities applicable to unfamiliar and evolving challenges.
Collaborate Successfully
Aligned NACE Competencies: Teamwork & Leadership
NACE defines teamwork as working effectively toward shared goals and leadership as motivating and guiding others. Collaboration at K emerges through group work, student organizations, campus employment, and community engagement.
What this means for students:
You gain experience contributing to teams, navigating group dynamics, and taking initiative when needed.
Demonstrate Intercultural Competency
Aligned NACE Competency: Equity & Inclusion
NACE emphasizes engaging respectfully with individuals from diverse backgrounds and contributing to inclusive environments. K’s emphasis on global learning, through study abroad, community‑based learning, and curricular work on identity and culture, supports this outcome.
What this means for students:
You become prepared to work across cultures, perspectives, and identities in academic, professional, and civic settings.
Other NACE Competencies
Some NACE competencies do not map one‑to‑one to a single ILO, but are developed across multiple contexts in a student’s K-Plan:
- Career & Self‑Development: Supported through reflective advising, coaching, and engagement in experiential and work‑based learning.
- Professionalism: Strengthened through academic expectations, responsibilities in campus employment and co‑curricular roles, and experiential education.
- Technology: Developed through digital literacy in coursework, discipline‑specific tools, and platforms that support students’ academic and professional growth.
Division‑ and Major‑Level Mapping
While each ILO pairs cleanly with a primary NACE competency at the institutional level, students often develop multiple NACE competencies simultaneously within their academic programs. Program‑level mappings show that multiple learning experiences contribute to multiple NACE competencies, revealing the richer, interconnected ways students develop skills through coursework, research, and experiential learning.
The Center for Career and Professional Development welcomes partnerships with faculty and departments interested in mapping ILOs and NACE competencies within their major, program, or division.
The Bigger Picture
Career readiness at K is not separate from the liberal arts curriculum. It emerges naturally as students integrate learning, experience, and reflection across their K‑Plan. This alignment illustrates the enduring value of a Kalamazoo College education and demonstrates how K prepares students for meaningful work and lives of impact.