Ask any UNC-Chapel Hill graduate student to describe their educational experience, and there’s a good chance you’ll hear them mention something associated with the words “depth” or “expertise.” In-depth knowledge. Exhaustive research. Specialized skill development. Yet, the ones who aim to help solve some of the world’s most critical social and scientific challenges, quickly find clarity on what it takes to make an impact: The problems they want to address feel too big for any single solution.
To help graduate students learn to work effectively across disciplines to solve complex problems, the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill is launching the Carolina Graduate Certificate in Innovation for the Public Good. The program teaches students about modern change-making and helps them practice the skills they need to collaborate with others, partner with government and communities, and lead without authority to tackle challenges in new ways.
“We wanted to fill the gap in offerings on campus to give graduate students the mindset, methods and tools to be effective working across sectors and disciplines to solve complex economic, social and ecological problems,” said Melissa Carrier, CIPG inaugural advisory board chair and director of the Office of Social Innovation at Innovate Carolina. “The certificate aims to give students the tools needed, so no matter where they go or what they do, they can problem solve with others to address the interrelated issues and begin to create large-scale change.”
| UNC-CH