Boler Professional Development
The Boler Professional Development Program (BPD) is a four-year, comprehensive program dedicated to preparing our students for their future careers. Beginning freshman year, you will engage in a series of career events, workshops, and experience to practice, polish, and perfect your professional skills.
BPD Goals
- Prepare you with the necessary skills and confidence to enter the workforce
- Provide you with a competitive advantage with employers
- Position you for your first choice in a career upon graduation
Competency-Based Professional Skills
The four-year course timeline enhances students’ professional skills in the following competencies:
- Written communication: Professional branding
- Interviewing: How to sell yourself
- Networking: Seeking opportunities
- Etiquette/professionalism: Professional conduct
- Experience: Demonstrate competency and value
Course Code | Course Name | ||
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Course Code | BPD 100 | ||
Course Description |
Designed to prepare you with the basic skills to start your journey of professional development. Topics include creating a resume, creating a LinkedIn profile, StrengthsFinder, and email etiquette. |
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Course Code | BPD 200 | ||
Course Description |
Learn how to network while gaining an introduction to interviewing. Topics include transferable skills, creating an elevator pitch, and writing a cover letter. |
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Course Code | BPD 300 | ||
Course Description |
Continue to put your professional skills into practice; build upon professional experience; practice behavioral-based interviewing with mock interviews. Topics include updating your resume and LinkedIn, creating a career plan, mock interviewing, mentorship, and how to get the most out of an internship and/or job. |
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Course Code | BPD 401 & 402 | ||
Course Description |
Understand the next steps after accepting your job offer, emotional intelligence, diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging, financial literacy, and navigating your first 90 days of employment. If you have not yet received a job offer, this course will cont |
What To Expect
Preparing you, one step at a time.
Self-discovery, awareness, and planning.
- Online Reputation
- Professional Conduct
- Strengths Finder
- Linkedin Profile
- Résumé Writing
- Professional Speaker Series
Build and develop professional skills and capabilities.
- Business Etiquette
- Meet the Recruiters
- Network for Success
- Employer Visit Day
- Informational Interviews
- Finding an Internship
- Elevator Pitch
- Professional Speaker Series
Put professional skills into practice through learned experiences.
- Interviewing skills
- Mock Interview
- Meet the Recruiters
- Career-Related Membership
- Building a Network
- Résumés, LinkedIn, and Cover Letters
- Employer Visit Day
- Professional Speaker Series
Prepare for the transition from college to a career.
- Seek out Job Opportunities
- Turn Your Internship into a Job
- Meet the Recruiters
- Negotiating an Offer
- Applying to Graduate School
- Transitioning from College to a Career
- Professional Speaker Series
- Program Overview
- Resume writing
- Networking
- Phone Interview
- Professional etiquette and communication
- Interviewing
- Informational Interview
- Professional experiences: Internships, externships and co-ops
- Job offers and negotiations
- On-boarding and the first 90 days
- Lifelong career success and strategy
Throughout your career, you will continue to learn about your leadership virtues and deepen your appreciation for how a Jesuit business education helps to form your ethical and spiritual inner compass (regardless of your religious or non-religious affiliation), and prepares you to lead a business in a manner consistent with human purpose and dignity.
The Boler Approach
CONTACT US
Robert Stein
Executive in Residence; Leadership Development Program
John Carroll University
Office: (216) 397-1763
rstein@jcu.edu
Chelsea Donovan, M.Ed.
Program Manager, Boler Professional Development
John Carroll University
cdonovan@jcu.edu