Bachelor of Commerce (Digital Marketing) - Postsecondary ...

5.3 Experiential Learning in the Lawrence Kinlin School of Business
The process of building value in students using
an applied approach to post‐secondary
education is illustrated in the figure to the
right. Data and theoretical information are
critical elements as the starting point, but need
to be applied in order to create knowledge and
the know‐how that translates into value for
students and employers.
Figure 5.3
LKSB has developed a very successful form of
experiential learning, illustrated in Figure 5.4,
under the direction of our Coordinator of
Community Consultants and Community
Partnerships.
The model assists students to build the
skills to incorporate theory into practice.
Students are introduced to real world
examples through cases early in their
program of study. Simulation exercises
then prompt students to make decisions
and realize the outcomes of those
decisions. In later semesters of a program,
students are introduced to “live client”
projects where they act in the role of
consultant to identify and propose
solutions to a specific problem for an
organization. In the proposed Bachelor of
Commerce program, “live client” projects
would occur in the Capstone Client Project
course in Level 8, if not before.
Figure 5.4 Model for Delivering Experiential Learning
in the Lawrence Kinlin School of Business
An example of a “live client” project follows, conducted by 3rd Year HR diploma program students in
Winter 2012.
The Human Resources Community Consultants worked with two clients in Winter Semester 2012 – one
a global engineering firm and the other a large Ontario retailer in a specific market. Both projects took
place over 15 weeks.
For the engineering firm, the Consultants prepared a comprehensive onboarding program for new
staff. The group undertook primary and secondary research on the subject. They then developed a
comprehensive onboarding manual, including lesson plans and activities for the initial three day and
then ongoing onboarding. The material was presented to the client in an hour long presentation by the
102 Bachelor of Commerce (Digital Marketing)