Experiential Badges

Collect badges. Build your story.

Contact career360@smu.ca for more information
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Experiential Badges Collect badges. Build your story. Contact career360@smu.ca for more information
Visit Instagram Visit X/Twitter Visit Facebook Visit LinkedIn

What are Digital Experiential Badges?

Digital Experiential Badges celebrate the skills, achievements, and growth you gain through experiential learning opportunities during your degree. Each badge showcases your competencies, making it easy to share your accomplishments with employers, graduate schools, and your professional network.

Badges are recorded on your Student Experience Record and can be earned throughout your academic journey, reflecting your dedication to continuous learning, engagement, and personal growth.

How to Earn a Badge

  • Track your experiences through Career360° and choose the experiential badge category that best describes your experience.
  • Each experience will be validated by the Experiential Learning Office.
  • Additional activities may be approved at the discretion of the Experiential Learning team.

Badge Levels

  • Bronze: at least five unique experiential opportunities.
  • Silver: at least ten unique experiential opportunities.
  • Gold: at least fifteen unique experiential opportunities.
  • Platinum: at least twenty unique experiential opportunities. Students will also receive a signed certificate of completion.

Badge Categories

  • Career Explorer
  • EDIA Champion
  • Entrepreneurship
  • Community Leader
  • Sport Leader

Explore the boxes below for a closer look at each badge category

Career Explorer Badge

Students will learn how to articulate the skills and experiences developed throughout their degree in a resumé and cover letter, and how to present their knowledge, skills, and abilities in an interview. Benefits and outcomes of the Career Explorer Badge:

  • Refining awareness of one’s own potential.
  • Connecting with employers and community partners.
  • Improving employability by learning vocational skills.
  • Exploring and improving interpersonal skills and self-development skills.

Anticipated Competencies: Continuous Learning, Accountability, Self-Reflection, Creative Thinking, Technology Skills

EDIA Champion

Students engage in practices that challenge the status quo, promote social justice and the inclusion of diverse groups. The EDIA badge offers:

  • Strategies for navigating sensitive issues related to diversity and inclusion.
  • Training to increase awareness around topics related to mental health and wellness, sexual violence harassment and prevention, accessible and inclusive spaces, etc.
  • Developing self-reliance, independence, and resiliency.
  • Creating a framework to overcome personal ignorance, prejudice, apathy and fear.

Anticipated Competencies: Equity and Inclusion, Self-Reflection, Resiliency, Respectfulness, Mentoring

Entrepreneurship Badge

Students learn how to identify, create, and evaluate new business ideas, and understand the key areas of a business plan to be able to make a pitch to an audience. Benefits and outcomes of the Entrepreneurship badge:

  • Increasing self-confidence by successfully setting and achieving a goal.
  • Developing your entrepreneurial communication skills.
  • Exploring and improving interpersonal skills and self-development skills.
  • Achieving satisfaction by overcoming challenges and obstacles.
  • Improving planning and organization ability and attention to details.
  • Learning to make real decisions and accept real consequences.

Anticipated Competencies: Strategic Approach; Planning, Coordination, & Implementation; Creative Thinking; Problem Solving; Resourcefulness

Community Leader Badge

Students demonstrate exceptional leadership skills and learn how to showcase their growth and development through self-reflection and critical thinking exercises while engaging in the betterment of the campus and community. The Leadership badge offers:

  • Accepting the responsibility of commitment to others.
  • Enhancing leadership qualities.
  • Forming a lifelong habit of community involvement.
  • Making a real difference to the lives of others.
  • Ways to showcase and articulate your leadership skills and knowledge.

Anticipated Competencies: Initiative, Collaboration & Teamwork, Visioning, Mentoring, Accountability

Sport Leader Badge

Student athletes develop through sporting, essential life and work skills, such as communication, organization and working with others and, at the same time, making a positive contribution to the community. The Sport Leadership badge offers:

  • Developing a healthy lifestyle.
  • Enhancing network and community commitment.
  • Experiencing a sense of achievement.
  • Increasing self-esteem.

Anticipated Competencies: Time Management; Decision Making; Collaboration & Teamwork; Visioning; Accountability.