Gaining Career Skills and Academic Credit While Contributing to the Community
Business student develops sustainability-minded marketing plan for local employer through community-based research course
For recent Bachelor of Business Administration grad, Will Hoben ’20 (Gzowski College), enrolling in a Community-Based Research (CBR) course that allowed him to collaborate directly with a local business was the perfect capstone to his final year.
Under the guidance of Raymond Yip Choy, course instructor in the School of Business, Will partnered with Charlotte Products, a local Peterborough business, to develop a marketing plan to help craft the company’s sustainability story. To inform the strategy, Will conducted an extensive literary review, market analysis, and survey within the community.
"We were pleased to support Will in his project and were very impressed with his research findings, recommendations, and presentation, all of which we have incorporated into our corporate sustainability enhancement project,” said Matt Strano, chief executive officer at Charlotte Products.
For Will, having the opportunity to work on a project that addressed a real-world challenge taught him many invaluable lessons, including professionalism and how to manage long-term projects.
“This was the perfect avenue to really dive in and apply specific knowledge,” he said. “It’s going to provide a lot of intangible and a lot of tangible knowledge that I’ll carry with me through the rest of my career.”
In addition to providing students with unique experiential learning, CBR courses provide community partners with coveted resources and fresh perspectives that are instrumental in tackling local issues and challenges.
"By tackling vital research questions for community organizations, students contribute to community development while applying the theories and academic skills they have learned in the classroom to real-world situations,” said Ryan Sisson, manager of community and workplace partnership with the Trent Community Research Centre. “Partnerships between Trent and community organizations are crucial in preparing students for their future careers.”
Those interested in learning more can explore this year’s available projects and book a meeting with a project coordinator.