KALAMAZOO, MI (WKZO AM/FM) — In order to combat dwindling enrollment numbers, Western Michigan University is applying a “Think Big” initiative to be more accommodating to the needs of students.
In an announcement forum Monday, university officials talked about how WMU wants to be more flexible with students for career exploration.
Over the last 15 years, WMU has seen a steady decline of students enrolled at the school. A survey of students, teachers, citizens, and Western alumni gathered different ideas for how to make WMU more appealing to new college students.
The suggestions gathered all culminated into one “Big Idea,” which is aimed to help students discover what their passions and interests are early on in their enrollment at WMU, rather than expecting recent high school graduates to know what they want to do with their lives or careers.
Part of this change in thinking will allow students to explore different majors without adding more semesters to their individual college experiences. Students will be allowed and encouraged to try out different areas of study, followed by a reassessment later on. Different skill sets for each of these career paths will also be discussed with students, as well as how to develop them.
As part of the new “big idea,” Western will also be more accommodating to the mental health needs of an individual student. These issues will be addressed by creating different plans for each student.
Three more meetings on the subject are scheduled for this month with dates listed below:
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9 a.m. to 11 a.m. Tuesday, Oct. 15, at Bernhard Center South Ballroom
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3 p.m. to 5 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 30, at Bernhard Center Rooms 208-210
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2 p.m. to 4 p.m. on Thursday, Oct. 31, at Bernhard Center South Ballroom
A Marketing Reseach Deep Dive meeting is also scheduled for Tuesday, October 15th at 1:30 p.m. in the Bernhard Center. The meeting will take place in rooms 208 and 209.
Anyone wishing to attend these meetings to learn more about the “big idea” must RSVP online to attend.
