Tag: Professional Development

Options for Using Your Educational Assistance Benefit

Published on by Megan MacGregorLeave a comment

Are you an MSU support staff employee looking for professional development opportunities? There are a variety of ways for you to learn and grow in your career at MSU. If you find a course or learning opportunity you’re interested in, don’t forget you have access to Educational Assistance! This benefit offers financial assistance towards your professional development after you’ve worked at MSU for an equivalent of 12 full-time service months. If you work less than full-time, the benefit is prorated based on your employment percentage.

You may receive financial assistance for a variety of learning opportunities. For non-credit learning opportunities, you may have up to $800 per year to use towards registration fees. It must be considered job-related and from an approved institution/program to receive assistance. Some examples of learning opportunities you can use this benefit for include:

For credit courses, you can receive up to 14 credits per academic year. Your financial assistance level is determined by your union group, the type of course you’re taking (graduate or undergraduate), and where you’re taking the course (MSU or another university). The course must be considered job-related, degree-related, or career/professional development-related.

Find detailed information about Educational Assistance – including how to apply – on the HR website. Questions? We’re happy to help! Contact the HR Solutions Center at SolutionsCenter@hr.msu.edu or 517-353-4434.

Please note: Academic Specialists have a program similar to Educational Assistance, please see the HR website for details.

Measure Value with These Courses!

Published on by MSU Human ResourcesLeave a comment

How do you know the functions and services you offer are providing what your “customer” needs? And, if so, do you have the data to back that up? MSU leadership is promoting and supporting data-driven decision making. How do you know what to measure and who to ask? Attending two upcoming Professional Development Services (PDS) courses offered will help you decide what you should measure and then create a plan to do it.

Business Presentation
Assessments and surveys can help you better present your programs and services’ value to MSU leadership!

On Wednesday, March 25, from 2 p.m. – 4 p.m. you can attend Proving Value: Introduction to Assessments, for free. How do you know the programs you offer are adding value? Assessments provide a method for determining what to measure, how to measure and who to ask. This session will cover a wide range of assessment topics such as, developing an effective assessment plan, collecting data, and interpreting and reporting your results.

The second class, Proving Value: Designing Effective Surveys,  will be held on Monday, April 20, from 2 p.m. – 4 p.m. and is also free. This course will discuss the best ways to get feedback from your customers to ensure your programs and services are adding value. This interactive session will help you in developing surveys that are useful, informative, and contribute to data-informed decision making. You will also discuss how to make your surveys user-friendly and increase survey response rates. The presenter for each of these courses is Paul Goldblatt of the MSU Residential and Hospitality Services Assessment Office.

For more information about these courses please visit the PDS site or download their catalog which details many more professional development courses offered throughout this year!