Classroom learning can be a lot like riding a bike with training wheels -- it's so safe you can hardly fall, but will you be prepared when the rubber meets the road? In these college programs, the training wheels are off, and students are learning to ride for real.

Cold case investigation
What do the murder of Tupac Shakur and the disappearance of Natalee Holloway have in common? They've both been declared cold cases -- neither has been solved nor remained the subject of current criminal investigation. They're also two of the cases that have been investigated by students at Bauder College (Atlanta, GA).

Through the school's Cold Case Investigative Research Institute, students examine coroners' reports and witness statements, meet with victims' families, and work with professional detectives to get real-life insight into how an investigation is built. In all cases, they identify suspects and forward their conclusions to law enforcement and the victims' families. They don't get college credit, and they don't get paid, but they do get invaluable experience that can help them secure work in the criminal justice system later on.


Business consulting
Small businesses seeking consulting services such as marketing strategies (logo creation, public relations, promotional materials), building company Web sites and databases, completing financial analysis, developing human resource management systems, and improving operational infrastructures are turning to college students for assistance

For 10 weeks, students enrolled in the Business Consulting course at Everett Community College's School of Business Design (Everett, WA) are paired with local businesses. Through client meetings, site visits, and independent research, student consulting teams develop a professional marketing plan for their business.

In the first academic quarter of 2009, student teams worked with a local coffee shop, ballroom, photography studio, and the college's Food Services division.

Portfolio management
Through the Student Investment Management Fund at Roger Williams University's Gabelli School of Business (Bristol, RI), students are given the opportunity to invest and manage real money -- $100,000, to be exact.

Ten undergrads enrolled in the Portfolio Management course in the school's Center for Advanced Financial Education become active participants in a dynamic, real-money experience. Utilizing the latest analytical tools and technology employed in the finance sector, students assume the responsibilities of financial analysts from day one of the course. Such unique access to the donated/endowed funds proves invaluable as students bridge the gap between college and their financial career.
 
Human-centered design
It started as a six-week project for freshmen in the College of Engineering at the University of California, Berkeley. It's become a labor of love that could result in centralized, sustainable housing for a small Native American tribe.

Last spring, students in an Engineering Design and Analysis course accepted the challenge to design culturally sensitive and energy-efficient housing for the Pinoleville Pomo Nation. Students and tribe members met together to map out the community's needs and brainstorm design concepts. The collaboration resulted in a roundhouse-style design, which the tribe plans to submit when it applies for federal funding to build up to 25 new homes.

Seven undergraduate and graduate students continue to work on the project, and a UC Berkeley architecture class is further refining the design. CARES (Community Assessment of Renewable Energy and Sustainability), a student-run community outreach program at UC Berkeley, is sponsoring the overall effort.

Are you ready for the real-world classroom?

 

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