Does your student want to help change the world by building new businesses, building innovative teams or building communities? Does your student desire training in strengths-based leadership? Would your student benefit from the opportunity to study and network with like-minded students who are focused on changing the world throughout college and in their career?
Freshmen from any major at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln can apply for the Clifton Builders Program, a program offered by the Clifton Strengths Institute. Gallup Chairman and CEO Jim Clifton designed the Clifton Builders Program to identify and develop students with high leadership and entrepreneurial potential. At the university’s Clifton Strength Institute, the selected students go through advanced, hands-on experiences in strengths-based leadership, employee engagement and well-being within specialized, cohort-based courses. The completion of these courses, in addition to an experiential component that aligns with their strengths and future aspirations, results in earning a Clifton Builders management minor. This program prepares them to be in a position to affect the next generation of employees when they earn leadership positions in the future.
“The program was created to find and develop entrepreneurs, startup types, rainmakers and extraordinarily talented salespeople and leaders – people who have a natural gift to create economic energy where none existed before,” said Clifton. “The United States has an oversupply of innovators and an undersupply of entrepreneurs.”
Selected students choose between three tracks in the builders program. These include business builders, team builders and community builders. Students analyze their strengths and passions to determine which path best suits their skill set and future career goals.
To apply, students will need to take Gallup’s Builder Profile 10 (BP10) assessment online before completing their application. The application deadline for the fall 2018 cohort is February 15. Interviews will take place in late February so students will be able to register for the first Builders course, Building a Life of Impact (MNGT 324B), for the fall 2018 semester during priority registration in March.
Mark Pogue, executive director of the Clifton Strengths Institute, explains though the world is good at identifying and developing student potential when it comes to academic or athletic performance, it can be hit or miss when trying to identify the next Steve Jobs vs. Lebron James.
“The selection process for the Clifton Builders Program is designed to identify talent that could launch a great business, non-profit or bring the next wave of innovation within existing organizations,” said Pogue. “The Gallup BP10 assessment not only gives us a glimpse of a student’s potential from a unique perspective, it also gives us a language to explore how we can best develop that potential.”
After selecting their track, each student is paired with a Gallup-Certified Strengths Coach to help them better understand their unique strengths and how to apply them to maximize their success in college and beyond. Students learn where they can make the greatest impact in accordance with program goals. Some Builders Program members specialize in job creation and creating a business, while others focus on transforming the landscape of organizations or building stronger communities through leadership involvement in non-profits and service agencies.
More details at: http://business.unl.edu/builders