One of the primary reasons I joined the College Student Development and Counseling (CSDC) program at Northeastern was to learn Student Development Theory and be able to operationalize that knowledge in advising sessions with students. In the first year of our program, we learned the theoretical and empirical foundations of College Student Development Theory. We then created our own theories focused on the needs of a student sub-population of our choice, followed by a program that might implement insights gained from our research. My partner and I wanted to focus on uncommitted students: that is, students who are in majors that their parents chose, or who are questioning or struggling with their major choices. These students are often hyper-aware of the real-world implications of their major choices for their careers, and are often fearful of failure and disappointing their loved ones. These things can lead to emotional turmoil or crisis.

Our Spectrum Program, created for a fictional public university, employs a cohort model with built-in mentorship for all four (or four-plus) years of a student’s academic program. This artifact combines all of the elements of our student development model and the various facets of start-up costs and logistics for our program. As I did not know anything about Student Development Theory at the beginning of the CSDC program, this project demonstrates my growth in the area of Student Learning and Development by showcasing the finished product of our year-long project.