Page 13 - 2022 OIT Progress Report

PowerPoint certifications as part of the Business and Professional Communications course,
and certification in Microsoft Excel to
complement Communication Research &
Data Analytics.
Dr. Kelly also pursued Microsoft
Office certifications for herself. She shared her experiences with us, “Thank you so much for having these available for the students. I think this is a wonderful program. It is not only good for the students but also for the faculty ... we take it for granted that we know these programs, but actually there is a lot more that we can learn. I would encourage faculty to take advantage of this, and also all students, not just from CCPA or the Business School, but across campus. It’s really another great benefit of being a Mustang and this is a wonderful opportunity that can land them a great internship or job.”
Staff are also engaging in their own pursuit of getting certified in applications that they use intensively in their work. Stephanie Robertson, Prospect Manager Analyst working with Development and External Affairs first learned about the Microsoft Certification program during DEA’s new hire onboarding session. Stephanie shared she was overwhelmed initially thinking about taking a certification exam until her supervisor explained all the resources that were available to support her. “Taking this certification
“
I would encourage faculty to take advantage of this, and also all students, not just from CCPA or the Business School, but across campus. ”
showed me how to manipulate data in a way that I didn’t really know how, and to display it to people in a really simple way. It also reminded me to be open to learning. Just because you don’t know how to do something right now doesn’t mean you’ll never be able to know how to do it. SMU has given us these resources... why not take advantage of it?”
As the program continues to grow, the Office of Information Technology plans to pilot additional certification opportunities that would support SMU’s efforts to pursue R1 status. “We plan to evaluate certifications in Artificial Intelligence, Data Analytics and Python. It’s critical to strengthen these core competencies and align the certification program in support of research,” stated Rachel Mulry, Associate CIO of Customer Service and Planning. These pilot programs
will continue to require collaboration with the entire campus community to pinpoint specific professional development
and academic needs.
CLICK BELOW TO
Getting Certified at SMU
In December 2021, IT Training issued it’s 3,000th Microsoft Office Certification, see how certification impacts our campus in and out of the classroom.
WATCH THE VIDEO.
EnhAncInG TEAchInG & lEARnInG wITh nEw TOOlS And SERvIcES
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