While extended-reality technologies can enhance student learning in classrooms, the Center for Academic Innovation has created a program to also help staff members throughout the University of Michigan campus.
Angela Benke, director of talent acquisition at University Human Resources, thought it would be beneficial to develop a method to teach interviewing skills with virtual technology.
With more than 4,000 hiring managers at U-M, she knew it would be unrealistic to try to meet with each of them to role play an interview and coach them on proper interview etiquette.
Benke approached Jeremy Nelson, senior director of creative studios at the CAI, in 2020 about using VR software to create a behavior-based interviewing module.
“Before I came to U-M, my organization (a business consulting firm) made sure every hiring manager took a two-day boot camp to learn about behavioral interviewing. It included theory, practice and coaching,” Benke told the CAI.
“That’s just not possible at a large university, so I asked myself how to replicate part of that experience. I decided VR made sense because practice is so much more effective than only listening to theory, and VR is also less awkward.
“We are not asking people to pretend to be job candidates. We are asking people to practice their interviewing skills. VR also ensured high quality because I could design a consistent experience for everyone.”
After years of designing and testing, the CAI launched the program in 2023. As of April 2024, more than 100 members of the U-M community had participated in the training sessions. In the sessions, participants select potential questions and receive feedback from a VR interview coach.
“Our typical XR projects are focused on student learning opportunities. This was a unique opportunity to incorporate soft-skills training and create an environment to practice important job skills,” Nelson said.
“The benefit for U-M staff who take this training is immense. I also view it as a first step in better understanding how XR simulations can help students practice real-world scenarios and help them prepare for future academic and professional careers.”
Carolyn VerBurg
Congratulations Angela and Jeremy and others that supported this project!