LIFE, LEAP, and the Pursuit of KT Certification
Written by Adam October 24, 2016
Bowling!
What's more Italian than riding on the back of a motorcycle with a pizzeria owner?
Ciao,
A few of the main differences between CIMBA and other study abroad programs is that CIMBA focuses so much on professional and personal development through various programs. I know I’ve already talked about LIFE, but since I just finished my KT certification, and am about halfway through LEAP, this post is an important one.
LEAP is CIMBA’s semester-long, personal development class. You learn much more about your personality type, what causes you stress, and how to make change for the better. There’s a lot of neuroscience and different tests that you take that are a bit complex, and frankly above my pay grade to explain. You also get a personal LEAP coach that is trained to help you with your personal betterment every step of the way. LEAP was a main factor in choosing my study abroad program and it has definitely lived up to the hype!
Next on the discussion board is the Kepner Tregoe: Decision Making and Problem Solving Workshop(s). This certification consists of two days of learning how to objectively make decisions, solve problems and take preventative actions so they don’t happen, and address situations. We were given case studies which involved criteria from industries that no one understood, but we were able to figure out what went wrong and explain why. The certification is not just there to look good on a resumé, but also to help you in different situations. None of us would have been able to solve the case studies without the KT mindset. To test your newly learned skills, many of the classes at CIMBA involve using the skills learned from KT on exams, so if you take the time to pay attention and learn how these work, you’ve got a leg up on the exams. Oh, and I can’t go without mentioning that my KT team won the problem analysis workshop. Shoutout to the squad!
In conclusion, CIMBA’s specialty programs are winners that give you access to invaluable skills and personal development tools.
In case you are worried that CIMBA only keeps it professional with KT, LIFE, formal dinners, etc. worry no more. This past week I went bowling with my professor, a few students joined Italian families for dinners at their homes, next week is pizza-making with a professor, and there’s a ton more to come!
‘Til next time,
Adam
Blogger: Adam, Western Michigan University
