In fall of 2018, Bates College and Gallup embarked on a study to measure the extent to which college graduates seek purpose in their work and identify the college experiences that align with finding purpose in work after graduation. 80 percent, or four out of five college graduates, affirm the importance of finding purpose in their work, but less than 50 percent say they succeed in finding purposeful work. Here at West Virginia University, we want to change that number for our students.
Exploring your purpose – whether as an individual or as a university – is the driver that pushes us onward. It propels us to try new things, to become more than we thought we could be. And that is why West Virginia University is going to use the power of purpose to transform higher education. To transform lives.
The Purpose Center, the only one of its kind to exist on a 4-year college campus, serves as a place for connection and self-exploration. Connecting students with resources across campus to pursue the things they’re passionate about and creating a safe space for them to discover who they are and the impact they want to have on the world around them.
Since launching in Fall 2022, the Purpose Center has had more than 61,000 interactions through more than 950 group workshops or classroom visits, 750 one-on-one coaching sessions, and partnerships with more than 140 departments across campus. The result is an engaged, strengths-based culture where everyone feels empowered to become the best versions of themselves.
The WVU Purpose Center is a two-time Gallup Exceptional Workplace Award winner honoring it's work as a Strengths-Based Campus. This global award recognizes workplaces that are committed to building a thriving culture where performance and people matter.
