iSmith
iSmith empowers Maryland Smith students to evolve at the pace of business.
iSmith provides undergraduate students with a framework to guide personal and professional development through the enhancement of core competencies during their Smith journey. Faculty, staff, students, alumni, and employer partners work collaboratively to help students identify and communicate their personal passions, skills, knowledge and purpose.
At Smith, we are committed to building a collaborative, inclusive, supportive team culture where our students learn and thrive. From their first year through their senior year, students have the opportunity to participate in a portfolio of meaningful and relevant opportunities, including case competitions, interdisciplinary honors programs, organizational leadership opportunities, global immersion trips, and consulting projects. As students engage in these learning experiences, they will begin to sharpen essential skills and core competencies needed in the business world. iSmith gives students a framework to track and build knowledge and skills that prepare them for a world where they will embody the four “i” s of iSmith: innovative, inclusive, informed and influential.
With new programs and imaginative approaches to business curriculum, we can teach our students how to analyze problems, think creatively, and work with people who are different from them to strategically tackle new challenges in business as they arise and anticipate ones that are yet to come.
Under the frame of our four i’s, Smith students will build the following core competencies:
Communication
Communicate effectively verbally and in writing; can write/edit memos, emails and complex business documents clearly and effectively; the individual has public speaking skills and is able to express ideas to others clearly and effectively.
Diversity, Equity & Inclusion
Explain and demonstrate the value of environments, practices, and processes that are diverse, equitable, and inclusive in relevant disciplines, and how they drive business excellence. Identify and amplify the lived experiences, expertise, and voices of those who are marginalized within a business context. Analyze and communicate the weight and consequences of business or organizational decisions on marginalized individuals, groups, organizations, and society as a whole.
Quantitative and Digital Analytics
Identify and use appropriate quantitative tools and techniques; use software applications to analyze and solve problems; the individual demonstrates effective adaptability to new and emerging technologies.
Teamwork and Leadership
Foster and sustain collaborative team environments that are inclusive of ideas from members representing diverse backgrounds and viewpoints; can negotiate and manage conflict; ability to assess and regulate one's own emotions; apply leadership, interpersonal and empathetic skills to motivate, guide and develop others and achieve common goals.
Innovative Thinking
Consider and pursue unique approaches to problem-solving; creative problem solving, demonstrate originality and innovation.
Critical Thinking and Problem Solving
Apply business knowledge in new contexts to exercise sound reasoning to analyze issues, make decisions and overcome problems; obtain, interpret and use knowledge, facts and data to develop critical thinking.
Professionalism
Identify and understand knowledge, skills and abilities to identify personal and professional self and areas for growth; demonstrate personal accountability in the workplace through integrity and honesty; exhibit professionalism through verbal and non-verbal habits and cues; understand how one's knowledge, skills and abilities to respond to changing workforce demands; navigate and explore career options; understand how functional areas interact and drive one another; can take the necessary steps to pursue opportunities and self-advocate in the workplace.
Awards won from Suitable at their annual conference: Best First Year Experience (2020); Best New Program (2020); Highest Engagement (2021)
Questions about iSmith? Please email us at ismith_program@umd.edu.