Students, faculty, and staff looking to introduce a new hands-on learning opportunity can apply for funding support through Queen’s Experiential Learning Hub.

Applications are now open to the Experiential Learning Projects Fund – a one-time funding opportunity designed to integrate experiential learning opportunities into courses or co-curricular projects, enabling students to apply workplace-linked skills on-campus, across the country or around the world.

“By bridging theory and practice, experiential learning activities provide students with the opportunity to apply what they have learned in the classroom, enhancing their understanding and knowledge of themselves and their field of study,” says Cathy Keates, Director of Career Services which oversees the Experiential Learning Hub. “In Winter 2018 this program supported 19 projects resulting in 247 Queen’s students accessing new experiential learning opportunities. We hope to continue to build on these strong results in 2018-19.”

This fund was created through support from Ontario’s Ministry of Advanced Education and Skill Development’s Career Ready Fund. The Career Ready initiative aims to support universities in increasing the number of students who complete an experiential learning experience before graduation. Queen’s received a total of $1.16 million from the Ministry through this program, with a portion of that being allocated to the Experiential Learning Projects Fund.

Grants will be awarded in the range of $1,000 to $2,000 per project, typically creating five to ten new student experiential roles per project. Special consideration will be given to initiatives that support underrepresented student populations and communities, and requests exceeding $2,000 will be considered on a case-by-case basis.

Lindsay Coombs received funding last year to build a Queen’s-based affiliate to the Women In International Security (WIIS) Canadian and global network, an organization dedicated to promote women’s leadership in international security.

“The Experiential Learning Projects Fund program was central to the success of the initiatives undertaken by WIIS Queen’s in the winter 2018 academic term,” Ms. Coombs says. “I believe that the type of impactful community engagement that this program promotes is important for the development of knowledgeable and compassionate leaders – the type of leaders whose perspectives will be critical in shaping Canada’s future.”

Other projects receiving funding last year include the Queen’s Native Students Association’s annual Indigenous Awareness Week, a food cupboard for families known as the Queen’s Community Cupboard, and a QYourFuture event for graduating international students as they transition to the workforce.

Those looking to apply for funding must include a description of the project; the specific skills or learning outcomes for students; the number of student experiential learning opportunities created and their specific roles; a description of the self-assessment and reflection mechanisms that will be used throughout the project; and a detailed budget.

The application deadline for the Spring 2018 round is Friday June 29, and there will be a final round in Fall 2018. For more information and to apply for funding, visit the Experiential Learning Hub website.