The University of Northern Colorado’s (UNC) Monfort College of Business (MCB) has made career readiness a central aspect of its curriculum for years. Through internships and other immersive learning opportunities, students will soon gain further valuable, hands-on experiences that will help them in their studies and in the workforce. Starting in the spring of 2025, MCB is partnering with Coursera to provide new opportunities for students to gain micro-credentials in a variety of topics. 

Coursera, an innovative company founded by Stanford professors, partners with top universities and industry leaders to offer courses, specializations, and certifications in areas like business, technology, and data science, making it a vital tool in bridging academic learning with workforce demands. It equips students with job-relevant skills that supplement their degrees and enhance their employability. 

According to a 2022 report by SHRM, employers place a high value on potential employees who have worked toward additional credentials. “Workers who hold alternative credentials bring value to the workplace, according to executives (87%), supervisors (81%) and especially HR professionals (90%)”, a viewpoint that is shared by many of MCB’s alumni who are themselves often responsible for deciding between similarly qualified candidates.  

Like Jared Schroder, ’05, founder and CEO of SEMoptimize, a digital marketing agency based in Denver, has served on the MCB Dean’s Leadership Council (DLC) for 10 years, where he advocated for students to have access to Coursera. Having experience hiring entry-level positions, Schroder believes having a micro-credential in addition to a university degree helps a candidate’s application stand out in a stack that can have 50 or more similar applicants. 

“We’re more than willing to train people who have a background in what we need in terms of someone with a marketing degree or a degree in analytics. Those are valuable things that would get you in the door... If you have a Google certification in Google Ads, or you have an analytics background, or certifications in AI, those sorts of things are big value adds that would make us look towards you,” said Schroder. 

Sterling Engelhard, ’10, runs the Denver office of the AIM Consulting Group, a national consulting firm. Serving on the DLC Chair, Engelhard was also an advocate of the college providing access to Coursera, seeing it as an easy way to distinguish students in the workforce. As a divisional manager for a team of sales professionals, Engelhard views micro-credentials in relevant fields to be a sign of an individual who will more readily hit the ground running when hired. 

“When I see that somebody has a micro-credential that aligns to their role and what they’re going to be doing... to me that employee’s time to value is shortened because they already understand a lot of what I’d have to teach them as an employer,” said Engelhard. 

Thanks to the generosity of a forward-thinking donor, Coursera access is completely free to MCB students, any students enrolled in a business class, MCB faculty and staff, further increasing their ability to become competitive job applicants in addition to their degree. 

Late this fall, MCB published their Summary of Employer Feedback for the Professional Experience Program, which emphasized the positive impact career experiences like internships have on student’s ability to enter the workforce. Of the 113 final evaluations completed by employers, 101 reported they were very satisfied with their student’s ability to contribute to their organization. 

When asked how satisfied they were with their student’s ability to conduct themselves appropriately in their organization, one employer said their student, “showed up every day engaged, ready to learn and with questions. He always asked great questions, contributed to the culture of the office, and worked incredibly hard.” 

The overwhelmingly positive feedback that MCB students receive when they participate in professional experiences speaks to the quality of students and career preparation being done in the college, but also to the importance of these types of programs. Exposing students to the demands of the workplace sets them up for success by demonstrating the pressures and expectations of their career path. 

By adding additional educational resources to students’ repertoire, MCB is providing a route for all students to learn new skills regardless of their interests and career aspirations. Thanks to the support of thoughtful donors and the insight of the MCB alumni who serve on the DLC, UNC students are continuing to benefit from crucial career preparation opportunities.