Potomac TAP Honors Program

By Ed Avella
Campus Director & Dean of IT Programs

I don’t know why I didn’t think of this before…

I rarely discuss specifics of University of the Potomachere, primarily because I prefer to use this as a venue for managers and employees to collaborate on discussions and build best practices. Today, however, I was inspired by something that I have known about and been impressed by but wonder if I’ve done a proper job communicating it to my colleagues who may find it extremely useful.

We (University of the Potomac) just published our newest class catalog, and as I was perusing the changes I stumbled upon our TAP program. Some of you may already be aware of if it you’d had the opportunity to check out our website, and if you did, you’d probably think it was an interesting program also.

I am talking about our Theoretical Applications Project (TAP) Honors program. A Potomac student must qualify for this program; with the completion of an Associate Degree (or a minimum of 60 credit hours) earned with a GPA of 3.0 or above.

It’s unique, and it’s intended to allow students to align their educational outcomes with specific needs in the workplace. The project is an activity that a student completes under the guidance of a workplace mentor and college professor, and can marry credit earning education with organizational needs through specific activities completed at work and associated discussion of what was learned through the process.

What strikes me about this is the occasion presented in which University of the Potomaccan connect its top performing students with organizations in need of talent in a way that assists both. Moreover, some of you might even have identified employees that are looking to complete their bachelor’s degree, meet the qualifications, and can undertake some very specific tasks with internal direction but under the tutelage of a college professor.

Potomac could sponsor an event that affords the opportunity for interested companies to come meet with prospective and qualified applicants to fill your employment needs while continuing their education. Or, if you prefer, individual opportunities for you to come to our campus and present your opportunities to a captive audience.

So…this week’s question is simply a request for a “show of hands” of companies looking to hire highly motivated, well performing employees looking to show off their developing problem solving acumen while completing their degree.