Your Liberal Arts Advantage: Core Career Competencies
According to a survey by the Association of American Colleges & Universities, 93% of employers prefer candidates with a liberal arts background, emphasizing that core career competencies—such as critical thinking, clear communication, and problem-solving—are more valuable than a specific major. At Soka University, your liberal arts education prepares you to engage as a global citizen, make informed choices, think critically, solve complex problems, and innovate in all aspects of life.
For many students, a key college goal is to build a strong foundation for their future careers. Soka’s approach ensures you graduate fully prepared—career-ready. Through a broad range of coursework and experiences, Soka students develop ten Core Competencies, a practical framework that deepens understanding of their education and empowers them to communicate its value across diverse career fields. This is Your Liberal Arts Advantage: Core Career Competencies.
RATE – A Digital Self-Assessment Tool
Your liberal arts education gives you a significant advantage—now, learn how to maximize it for career success with RATE! The RATE Digital Self-Assessment Tool helps you recognize and value your accomplishments and learning, which can easily be overlooked in the daily routine of a liberal arts student. By connecting the diverse experiences gained through your education, RATE enables you to translate these into valuable skills for any professional setting. Regularly documenting your progress not only boosts your self-awareness but also empowers you to clearly demonstrate your career readiness to yourself, your family, and future employers or graduate programs, making it easier to see how you can make a meaningful impact in the workplace, graduate school, or beyond.
RATE helps you tell your unique story. By logging your experiences, you can better understand the Core Career Competencies you’re developing. After each experience—whether it’s an assignment, community service project, internship, research study, or Learning Cluster—students should visit the RATE™ portal to:
- Capture: Record the experience in writing or through a short video to ensure it is logged and remembered.
- Connect: Link the experience to the Core Career Competencies that showcase career readiness.
- Communicate: Present tangible evidence of how these competencies are being developed.
