College students might be surprised to learn they can take a class that only teaches about climbing trees. That class is taught at Cornell University in the American state of New York. But it is not the most unusual subject taught by a college or university in the United States. The Massachusetts Institute of Technology, for example, offers a class on what it calls the mathematics of street-fighting. And Santa Clara University in California has a program called “The Joy of Garbage.” However, classes like these might be one reason many employers feel recent college graduates are not ready for the working world. Offering non-traditional classes might also be why some grads feel their college years failed to prepare them for a professional career. The Association of American Colleges and Universities (AACU) reports on ways to improve higher education. The group surveyed about 400 employers and 613 college students about how ready those students were to enter the professional world in 2015. The survey found large differences between the thinking of the students and the employers. Many of the differences were related to skills both students and employers believe are necessary.
Title: American College Students Need Professional Skills
Content: <div id='article-page'><div id='article-content' data-media-url='//news-app-staging.s3.amazonaws.com' data-base-url='//news-app-staging.herokuapp.com' data-sound-name='https://news-app-production.s3.amazonaws.com/articles/1416/professional_skills.m4a' data-capture-url='//staging.analytics.lingraphica.com/events/capture_news' data-article-title='American College Students Need Professional Skills' data-article-id='1915'><script src='//news-app-staging.herokuapp.com/javascripts/getscripts.js'></script><link rel='stylesheet' href='//news-app-staging.herokuapp.com/stylesheets/article.css' type='text/css' /><div class='article'><p><span data-start-time='0' data-end-time='9938'>College students might be surprised to learn they can take a class that only teaches about climbing trees.</span> <span data-start-time='9938' data-end-time='17583'>That class is taught at Cornell University in the American state of New York.</span> <span data-start-time='17583' data-end-time='26729'>But it is not the most unusual subject taught by a college or university in the United States.</span> <span data-start-time='26729' data-end-time='37646'>The Massachusetts Institute of Technology, for example, offers a class on what it calls the mathematics of street-fighting.</span> <span data-start-time='37646' data-end-time='46667'>And Santa Clara University in California has a program called “The Joy of Garbage.”</span> <span data-start-time='46667' data-end-time='58708'>However, classes like these might be one reason many employers feel recent college graduates are not ready for the working world.</span> <span data-start-time='58708' data-end-time='71188'>Offering non-traditional classes might also be why some grads feel their college years failed to prepare them for a professional career.</span> <span data-start-time='71188' data-end-time='81938'>The Association of American Colleges and Universities (AACU) reports on ways to improve higher education.</span> <span data-start-time='81938' data-end-time='96708'>The group surveyed about 400 employers and 613 college students about how ready those students were to enter the professional world in 2015.</span> <span data-start-time='96708' data-end-time='105250'>The survey found large differences between the thinking of the students and the employers.</span> <span data-start-time='105250' data-end-time='114729'>Many of the differences were related to skills both students and employers believe are necessary.</span> </p></div><div class='control-buttons-sticky' style='display:none;'><div class='control-buttons'><button title='Back' class='back' disabled='disabled'></button><button title='Play' class='play' disabled='disabled'></button><button title='Pause' class='pause' style='display:none;'></button><button title='Forward' class='forward' disabled='disabled'></button><button class='finished-reading' style='display:none;'>Done</button></div></div></div><div id='article-media'><div id='media-image'><img src='https://news-app-production.s3.amazonaws.com/articles/1416/professional_skills.jpg'/></div></div><div id='question-content' style='display:none;'><div class='vocabulary_question question-container' data-question-id=7321 data-hint-location='58708' style='display:none;'><div class='question' data-sound-name='https://news-app-production.s3.amazonaws.com/articles/1416/what_does_professional_mean.m4a'>What does professional mean?</div><div class='choices' data-correct-choice='relating to a job that requires special education, training, or skill'><div class='choice' data-sound-name='https://news-app-production.s3.amazonaws.com/articles/1416/a_job_that_requies_little_skill.m4a'><span>a job that requires little skill</span></div><div class='choice' data-sound-name='https://news-app-production.s3.amazonaws.com/articles/1416/relating_to_a_job_that_requires_special_education_training_or_skill.m4a'><span>relating to a job that requires special education, training, or skill</span></div><div class='choice' data-sound-name='https://news-app-production.s3.amazonaws.com/articles/1416/to_be_very_smart.m4a'><span>to be very smart</span></div><div class='choice' data-sound-name='https://news-app-production.s3.amazonaws.com/articles/1416/a_person_who_does_not_need_to_go_to_school.m4a'><span>a person who does not need to go to school</span></div></div></div><div class='multiple_choice_question question-container' data-question-id=7322 data-hint-location='58708' style='display:none;'><div class='question' data-sound-name='https://news-app-production.s3.amazonaws.com/articles/1416/what_type_of_classes_are_not_properly_preparing_college_students_for_the_working_world.m4a'>What type of classes are not properly preparing college students for the working world?</div><div class='choices' data-correct-choice='non-traditional'><div class='choice' data-sound-name='https://news-app-production.s3.amazonaws.com/articles/1416/nontraditional.m4a'><span>non-traditional</span></div><div class='choice' data-sound-name='https://news-app-production.s3.amazonaws.com/articles/1416/science.m4a'><span>science</span></div><div class='choice' data-sound-name='https://news-app-production.s3.amazonaws.com/articles/1416/math.m4a'><span>math</span></div><div class='choice' data-sound-name='https://news-app-production.s3.amazonaws.com/articles/1416/economics.m4a'><span>economics</span></div></div></div><div class='sentence_completion_question question-container' data-question-id=7323 data-hint-location='105250' style='display:none;'><div class='question' data-sound-name='https://news-app-production.s3.amazonaws.com/articles/1416/many_of_the_differences_were_related_to__blank__both_students_and_employers_believe_are_necessary.m4a'>Many of the differences were related to <span class='blank'>skills</span> both students and employers believe are necessary.</div><div class='choices' data-correct-choice='skills'><div class='choice' data-sound-name='https://news-app-production.s3.amazonaws.com/articles/1416/rules.m4a'><span>rules</span></div><div class='choice' data-sound-name='https://news-app-production.s3.amazonaws.com/articles/1416/bills.m4a'><span>bills</span></div><div class='choice' data-sound-name='https://news-app-production.s3.amazonaws.com/articles/1416/skills.m4a'><span>skills</span></div><div class='choice' data-sound-name='https://news-app-production.s3.amazonaws.com/articles/1416/classes.m4a'><span>classes</span></div></div></div><div class='question-buttons'><button class='skip-button'></button><button class='hint-button'></button><button class='speak-button'></button></div></div></div>
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