21st Century Student Leaders
One-week program for young leaders from Latin American universities
This program provides innovative development opportunities for the new generation of leading university students and is aimed at strengthening their professional competitiveness and raising awareness about existing global challenges. The program is an internationalization experience held in Cambridge, Massachusetts (USA) where, in addition to the students, professors or academic representatives of the university participate. This program includes workshops aimed at strengthening leadership, communication, and Design Thinking skills in the participants, while reflecting on the research process and the importance of having a global vision. Through this type of program, universities can provide its students with complementary development opportunities in critical areas for the institution such as, teaching assistants and research assistants. Program topics are aimed at strengthening their professional competitiveness and raising awareness about global challenges.
Program Outline
Day 1 | Project Development
The program begins with an orientation of the week's agenda, while introducing participants to the foundations for developing collaborative projects. Under the leadership of Laspau's University Innovation team, students receive key guidelines to develop projects addressing global challenges. Based on the sustainable development goals suggested by the United Nations (UN), our team provides guidance creating projects that help identify and analyze complex problems in society.
Day 2 | The Role of the
Teaching Assistant
Students learn basic elements to become successful teaching assistants and key collaborators to improve teaching and learning in their university. Through examples, exercises and discussions with experts in the field, participants gain knowledge on how to help teachers improve undergraduate education. This is an opportunity to better understand the role of teaching assistants in higher education.
Day 3 | Leadership Development
This session provides participants with an understanding of the basic leadership principles in the 21st century, aligned with business ethics and the long-term vision for developing a new generation of leaders and local communities. Through exercises and inspired reflections, students learn the importance of empathy, self-awareness and best practices to become successful 21st century leaders. In this workshop, students are immersed in an interactive session to deepen on their leadership skills, on characteristics and styles of successful leaders, as well as on the importance of teamwork.
Day 4 | Communication and Design Thinking
As part of the key elements to empower student leaders, the program offers learning sessions to develop effective communication strategies as well as sessions to learn the basics of Design Thinking and use their creativity skills as a tool to improve their performance and achievement.
Day 5 | Final Project
The last day of the program brings together students, professors, academic experts and the University Innovation team to present collaborative projects and share what they have learned. Participants present their final project: description of a problem in their community or university and present the solution to the problem. By this point, each team has developed a great idea not only to address a current problem, but they have also strengthened their problem solving, Design Thinking and leadership skills. The last day of the program is an opportunity to show they are ready to apply the knowledge acquired as university leaders and become agents of social change.
