If you’re looking for an opportunity to utilise your new-found skills while gaining a breadth of experience outside of your traditional field of study, The Impact Lab is for you.
The Impact Lab
Embark on real-world experiences with The Impact Lab, bridging academic learning with practical solutions to sustainability challenges. Contact us now!
You’re almost finished with your degree - what next?
What is The Impact Lab?
The Impact Lab facilitates real-world experiences of multidisciplinary teams by providing a forum for pan-divisional collaboration between students. You will be able to work on real sustainability issues faced by our surrounding communities, developing solutions in a team with a wide range of qualifications and majors. These challenges may be internal to organisations that cannot be solved due to a lack of time or resources, or beyond the scope of their industry but still have an impact on their organisation, for example, social, societal, environmental, logistical, political, technical, or artistic issues. The Impact Lab is your chance to shine and show practical application of the skills you have learned to date in a much broader context
What are the benefits to me in joining The Impact Lab?
Graduate roles can be highly competitive and successful completion of The Impact Lab can indicate to future employers that you already have what it takes to work successfully as part of a team to achieve directed outcomes. As part of The Impact Lab, students are also taken through a series of workshops that enhance both your work-readiness and “soft skills” that are key to a positive experience in your first post-tertiary role. Students who complete The Impact Lab are supported by both university and organisational mentors who provide guidance and support throughout the project.
Am I able to complete The Impact Lab as my work-integrated learning paper?
You are required to complete 115 points above 100 level before enrolling in the paper, unless you obtain divisional approval. You are also committing to around 150 hours of work (personal assessments, working towards outcomes for your project team, group meetings, etc) throughout the trimester, some of which will occur during the teaching recess.
Enrolment into your division’s The Impact Lab paper by your division’s enrolments team is at the discretion of the divisional programme team and the convenor of The Impact Lab.
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Testimonials
Oak Archvarin
Bachelor of Management Studies with Honours
"Throughout my four year degree, I can say with certainty that The Impact Lab was the one paper that provided an invaluable experience and allowed me to have realistic expectations when leaving the University and entering the workforce.
The assignments focussed on the hiring process and gave some insight into how you can stand out from other candidates. We focussed on creating CVs, cover letters and how to curate our personal LinkedIn pages. We worked closely with an assigned team - everyone involved were passionate about our project and came from different subject areas within the University. This was a fantastic experience as we were able to provide valuable input from a vast array of perspectives when it came to communicating with our clients about their projects.
When I finished this paper, I felt as though I had been set up and prepared to enter the 'real world,' as we had an excellent hands-on experience. This was a great indicator of what was to be expected, how crucial your online identity is and, most importantly, how to conduct myself in order to display desirable qualities to potential employers. "
University of Waikato students gain work experience and solve sustainability problems through Impact Lab
Year three students shared their findings at an Impact Lab presentation event this week, as part of the Work-Integrated Learning papers on offer at the University.
The Impact Lab - Turning Waste into Value
Action Manufacturing is Australasia's leading vehicle specialists. Their challenge to you is to design a new product using vehicle off-cuts, saving it from landfill and bolstering sustainability.
Driving sustainability: University students and Hamilton manufacturer tackle eco-challenges
A group of University of Waikato students are helping solve sustainability challenges for the largest vehicle specialist in Australasia.
Transforming waste into eco-friendly gold
A 300-litre compost bin using plywood offcuts from vehicle manufacturing has won a sustainable design competition for a group of students at the University of Waikato.