The Hispanic Association of Colleges and Universities (HACU) has announced an upcoming professional development event tailored for educators, administrators, and institutional leaders within its member network. The organization will host a specialized webinar titled “Measuring What Matters: Embedding Career Readiness Assessment into the Undergraduate Business Curriculum and Student Experience,” scheduled to take place on November 19, 2026, at 1 p.m. Central Time.
The virtual session is designed to address a critical and growing priority in higher education: how colleges and universities can move beyond traditional academic metrics to intentionally measure, track, and enhance student professional preparation. As higher education institutions face mounting pressure from students, families, employers, and policymakers to demonstrate clear return on investment and tangible employment outcomes, academic programs are increasingly tasked with integrating career development directly into the core curriculum rather than treating it as an extracurricular or optional add-on service.
According to event organizers, the webinar will offer a deep dive into the innovative approaches being utilized at the Dominican University of California. Specifically, the session will explore how the institution is successfully implementing a comprehensive pre- and post-assessment strategy within its undergraduate business curriculum. This methodology is designed to capture and measure student growth across several key pillars of professional and personal development, including career readiness, relationship-building capabilities, life design mindsets, and overall career mobility.
For faculty members, department chairs, deans, and career services professionals participating in the virtual event, the webinar aims to provide actionable, practical strategies for embedding similar assessment frameworks directly into existing courses and academic programs. Furthermore, attendees will learn how to effectively harness the data generated by these assessments. By analyzing this information, academic leaders can gain a clearer, evidence-based understanding of student growth over time, pinpoint specific areas within the curriculum that require improvement, and make informed, data-driven decisions regarding future program planning and resource allocation.
The virtual session will feature insights and presentations from prominent leaders actively engaged in this work at the intersection of higher education and professional development. The webinar will be presented by Giulia Welch, who serves as the director of internships and professional development as well as an adjunct professor at the Barowsky School of Business at the Dominican University of California. Welch brings direct, frontline experience in bridging the gap between classroom instruction and real-world professional experiences for undergraduate business students.
Joining Welch as a co-presenter is Marieli Rubio, partner and vice president of impact at Career Launch. Rubio brings an external, strategic perspective on student outcomes, program evaluation, and impact measurement, offering participants a broader view of how institutions can scale career readiness initiatives and validate their effectiveness through rigorous assessment methodologies.
The upcoming webinar forms part of the ongoing HACU-member webinar series, which is regularly curated to provide relevant, high-value professional development opportunities, timely discussions, and innovative best practices for faculty and staff across HACU’s extensive network of member institutions. These member-focused sessions are designed to support Hispanic-Serving Institutions (HSIs) and other colleges and universities in their continuous efforts to foster student success, academic excellence, and equitable workforce preparation for diverse student populations.
Registration for the November 19 event is currently open. Interested participants and institutional representatives from HACU member organizations can secure their attendance by accessing the official registration portal online.
