Level Up Faculty Resources

All students may participate in the Level UP program. We encourage participation because:

• The engagement strategies used in Level UP courses can lead to deep learning in the course and in the discipline.
• Level UP courses help students build skills that are important for success in college classes.
• Level UP courses help students connect with faculty and build a professional network.
• Level UP courses use strategies that promote student retention and graduation.
• Level UP courses help students document their career readiness. If they master the skills that are being fostered in the courses, it can lead to University‐level recognition.
  
  • Level UP courses appear with special designations on a student’s transcript. This indicates that the course fostered a particular career skill, and they engaged in a high-impact practice.
  • Level UP courses foster the development of a portfolio of work featuring essential career skills.
  • Students in Level UP courses who master an essential career skill and use the STAR Method earn a Distinction, one of the University’s highest honors. Students earning the Distinction are recognized at Commencement, and a special notice of Distinction appears on their transcripts.
• Level UP courses help students build essential career skills. This makes students more competitive in the job market and helps them move up in their careers.
• Level UP courses help students learn how to articulate their skill and demonstrate application.

MSU faculty have the discipline expertise and latitude to determine which courses may fit this program best. Here are some things to consider when deciding:

• Does my course already have opportunities for students to develop one of the essential career skills (i.e., oral or written communication, critical thinking, teamwork, or professionalism) through class activities/assignments?
  • If not, could I easily change the class activities/assignments to give students more opportunities to develop these skills?
• Does my course now use one of the high-impact practices (i.e., undergraduate research, education abroad, service learning, or internship) as a pedagogical strategy?
  • If not, could I easily foster the regular course content/outcomes using a high-impact practice (i.e., through a research project, education abroad experience, service learning project, or internship/mini-internship experience) as a teaching tool?
• Would having my course as a Level UP experience for students in my discipline add to the program’s ability to get students career-ready?
  • If so, can this course foster a skill not being leveled up in another program?
• Am I willing to give students regular feedback on how their skill development is progressing?
• Is your Chair/Associate Dean supportive of you offering the course as a Level UP class?

If your answer is yes to these questions, your course may be a good candidate for the program.

Want to know more or need help deciding? Contact Tim O’Brien or Megan Boone to discuss your course.

If you would like to Level UP your course, there are a few essential steps you will need to take:

• STEP 1 – Choose which essential career skill your course will foster – oral communication, written communication, critical thinking, teamwork, or professionalism. Need help deciding? Contact levelup@moreheadstate.edu to arrange a discussion about your course.
• STEP 2 – Choose the high-impact practice (i.e., one of the following: undergraduate research, education abroad, service learning, or an internship) you will use as a teaching tool to push your students to high levels of skill development. Need help deciding? Contact levelup@moreheadstate.edu to arrange a discussion about your course.
• STEP 3 – Attend two workshops to learn how to Level Up a class. You will attend one workshop specific to the skill you have chosen to foster and one workshop about how to teach/assess the STAR Method to your students so they can learn to tell the story of their career skills in action. You also may attend optional sessions on best practices related to high-impact practice and how best to use reflection and portfolios in your Level UP course. 
  
  Register for a workshop
  
  
• STEP 4 – Submit an application with a syllabus for Level UP your course in an upcoming semester (look at "Level UP Materials for Faculty" for further details). The Level UP Committee prefers to receive applications for fall semester courses by March 1 and spring semester courses by October 1, but we can be flexible.  We don’t deny any applications but will work with you to ensure the Level UP components are built into your course, so notify your Associate Dean or Department Chair of your intentions to Level UP and have the course built as a Level UP course.

If you need additional support at any point in the process, please get in touch with Level UP Co-Directors Dr. Tim O’Brien and Megan Boone at levelup@moreheadstate.edu. 

1. Choose one career skill to foster in a course section 
2. Use hands-on projects in undergraduate research and education abroad or partner with organizations through service learning or an internship.   
3. Modify three assignments and activities (2 practice and 1 final) to specifically target each of the five indicators on the career skill rubric. 
4. Integrate STAR Method practice opportunities (2 practice and 1 final) 
5. Provide targeted feedback on the two practice activities and determine career skill proficiency through the final culminating demonstration of competency 
6. Submit data on the 2 practice and 1 final activity and STAR Method reflection throughout the course to the Level UP committee (training provided on this at the beginning of each semester)

Faculty who teach Level UP courses need several key materials. These include:

• Skill Rubric: This rubric assesses the student's mastery of the skill you chose to focus on in your Level UP class. It will determine the course's two practice activities/assignments and the final culminating activity.  The rubrics for the essential career skills appear below – choose the one that matches your course. Mastery level is the student culminating activity(s) rated at “capstone” on at least 4 of the 5 indicators.
  
  • Oral Communication rubric
  • Written Communication rubric
  • Critical Thinking rubric
  • Teamwork rubric
  • Professionalism rubric
• STAR Method Prompt and Rubric: This rubric assesses students’ ability to use the STAR Method to articulate how they have developed their career skills through the high-impact experience embedded within your course. The Level UP Assessment team will use this rubric to assess the students’ final STAR reflection. Mastery level is the student's final STAR Method reflection being rated “fully articulated” on 3 of the 4 indicators (with no scores below a 3).
  
  • STAR Method prompt and rubric for Oral Communication
  • STAR Method prompt and rubric for Written Communication
  • STAR Method prompt and rubric for Critical Thinking
  • STAR Method prompt and rubric for Teamwork
  • STAR Method prompt and rubric for Professionalism
• Level UP Application Form: We don’t deny any applications but will work with you to ensure the Level UP components are built into your course, so go ahead and notify your Associate Dean or Department Chair of your intentions to Level UP and have the course built as a Level UP course.  Complete this Microsoft Form to indicate formally that your course will be listed in the Level UP offerings.
  • Complete Level UP Application.
  • You must provide your syllabus and a copy of the course plan for your career skill. These two documents must be completed before using the form. The Level UP Committee prefers to receive applications for fall courses no later than March 1. For spring courses, no later than October 1.
  • Level UP Course Plan for Oral Communication
  • Level UP Course Plan for Written Communication
  • Level UP Course Plan for Critical Thinking
  • Level UP Course Plan for Teamwork
  • Level UP Course Plan for Professionalism
• Level UP Course Build Info
• Level UP Syllabus Checklist
• Level UP Grant Information and Application: Faculty may apply for funds to help with the components of a Level UP course. For more information, see below.

Faculty can apply for funds to cover costs associated with a Level UP course. This includes activities/assignments to foster the development of an essential career skill in the program. For example, suppose the course activities/assignments require equipment, software, travel assistance, access codes, etc.. In that case, for the talent to be fostered, the faculty can apply for a Level UP grant to cover the costs. There are two types of Level UP grants offered:

• Level UP Mini-Grants (up to $1,000):  For expenses that occur each time the course is offered, apply for a Level-Up Mini-Grant of up to $1,000.
• Level UP Sustainability Grants (up to $2,500):  For expenses allowing you to teach the course multiple times, apply for a Level UP Sustainability Grant of up to $2,500.

Apply here for a Level UP Grant. Applications are reviewed on a rolling basis beginning with the fiscal year and will be accepted until all funds are distributed.

Notes:

1. Level UP grant funds cannot be spent on personnel.
2. Faculty awarded Level UP grants must report their expenditures at the end of the academic year.

Faculty attending the required 2-workshop training series on how to Level UP a course may earn a one-time $500 course redesign stipend. You must submit an approved Level UP application with a syllabus and course plan and teach the course.

Each time you teach a Level UP course, you are eligible to receive a $1000 stipend, or for courses that have an enrollment of at least 10 students, a $250 increase in base pay is available.  The $250 base pay option is limited to 6 sections total.  Compensation occurs each time a Level UP course is taught, and stipends are received at the end of the semester once final data is collected.

The Center for Career Development and Experiential Education provides support throughout the process. Brainstorming how to incorporate high-impact practices into your existing courses is one support. You can also have a team provide feedback to students on the STAR Method assignments to save yourself time. 

Faculty participating in Level UP have presented their class results on this pedagogical strategy at regional and national conferences. They also see improved student evaluations due to the explicit real-world connection between course content and career skills.

Faculty who participate in the Level UP program will have access to numerous forms of support, including:

• Professional development about pedagogical approaches to building essential career skills.
• Strategies for leveraging a high-impact practice (i.e., undergraduate research, education abroad, service learning, or internship) in the course to facilitate the development of an essential career skill.
• Logistical assistance for implementing a high-impact practice into the course.
• Course planning assistance for developing or improving a course in the Level UP program.
• Assistance with how to use the program rubrics and reflection prompts.
• Help with how to calibrate Level UP ratings.
• Support for reporting Level UP-related data.
• Professional development for continuous improvement strategies for Level UP courses
• Grant funding opportunities to support Level UP activities.
• Learning communities of faculty fostering the same career skills in the Level UP courses.