Kaplan University Graduate School of Management SELF DIRECTED LEARNING PLAN The Self Directed Learning Plan (SDLP) is a process and document to chronicle your accomplishments and learning steps through the MBA program and beyond as they relate to your professional goals. The SDLP will help you to identify and target the array of competencies you need to reach your professional objectives and to help you organize your Kaplan MBA learning experience to suit your career objectives.
The SDLP will be a section of your Career Portfolio, so take some quality introspective time to consider strengths and areas of development relevant to your career objectives. We encourage you to contact Career Services for feedback on relevant competencies for your career goal, as well as other insights. By knowing your strengths and areas to develop, you can begin a plan to find out what you need to do to achieve your career goals. We encourage you to continue to reflect on the identified areas throughout the MBA program.
If you feel strength or development area is no longer relevant, you may add another to take its place. At any time, you may also add additional areas. Your Name: Bettie Fowler Date: July 17, 2010 Course Title: GM500: Managers as Leaders Professional Goal (3-5 years) from now: My professional Goal 3-5 years from now is to have completed my Masters Degree in Management-Change Leadership and have or be well on my way toward earning my Doctorate Degree.
Prior to receiving my Doctorate Degree, I hope to land a career in teaching online at a well known university or school in the field of management. Those goals are necessary for me to succeed in my chosen profession of management-leadership. Strengths to Leverage Step 1: The most effective and satisfied people align their work with their natural strong points. Identify 3-5 of your key strengths (see Column 1 below); these could be a competency, skill, ability, knowledge area or personal characteristic.
Think about how you can leverage those strengths to be effective in your work, achieve your professional goals, and become a leader in your profession. Step 2: At the beginning of each course in your MBA program, answer the following question either using this template or a narrative format. What do you expect to learn in this course that will help you leverage your strengths? (see Column 2 below). Be as specific as you can, e. g. assume that a strength is your analytical ability. You might expect to understand more about macro economics so that you can analyze how the housing crisis affects other segments of the economy, such as interest rates or unemployment. At the beginning of the course you are not expected to be an expert in all facets of the course learning; however, you can glean valuable insights from the course description or purpose, course and unit learning objectives, and from unit themes.
Step 3: At the end of each course (Unit 5) answer the following questions either using this template or a narrative format. Did you learn what you expected to learn? (see Column 3 below). Was there information or insights that helped you that you didn’t expect to learn at the outset of the course? For example, not only did you learn about macro economics, but you learned some software tools that help in conducting an economic analysis.
What changes or additions, if any, will you make to your SDLP based on learning in this course? |Step 1: Strengths to Leverage |Step 2: Course Learning Goals |Step 3: Course Outcomes & Assessment | |Strength 1 Interpersonal and |To be able to understand how to interject my | | |Intrapersonal skills, |Interpersonal and Intra- personal kills to help in the| | |Trustworthiness,& Ethical values |leadership at my place of worship and possible work | | | |environment. | | |Communication, trustworthiness |This course will deepen my knowledge of leadership.
I | | | |did learn a great deal from the previous course. From | | | |this course I will take a stronger view on interceding | | | |other leadership styles with my norm. | | | | | Areas to Develop Step 1: We all have strengths, but we also have areas on which we need to improve.
As related to your career goal, identify 3-5 areas to develop (see Column 1 below); these could be a competency, skill, ability, knowledge area or personal characteristic. Think about how you can improve in these areas so that you can achieve your professional goals and become a leader in your profession. Step 2: At the beginning of each course answer the following question either using this template or a narrative format.
What do you expect to learn in this course that will help you to develop in the identified area? (see Column 2 below). Step 3: At the end of each course (Unit 5) answer the following questions either using this template or a narrative format. Did you learn what you expected to learn? (see Column 3 below). Was there information or insights that helped you that you didn’t expect to learn at the outset of the course? What changes or additions, if any, will you make to your SDLP based on learning in this course? Step 1: Areas to develop |Step 2: Course Learning Goals |Step 3: Course Outcomes & Assessment | |Area 1: Difficulty to respond to |I expect to learn strategies to deal with all my | | |aggression positively, difficulty |weakness and help me to overcome them. | |taking rejection, Area 3: Because of | | | |laid back attitude being seen as a “ | | | |pushover” | | | |Work on my ability to respond to | Learn how I can become a better leader | | |aggression. | | | | | | |
