From left: National SHRM Board Chair, Betty Thompson; HR & MBA alum, McKenzy Lilliock '21, MBA '22; president of SHRM Student Chapter, Jocelyn Keller; CEO of SHRM, Johnny Taylor.
Enhanced student career opportunities and professional development among benefits
Alvernia University's ACSBP-accredited human resource management program meets excellence as a Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM)academically aligned program for the eleventh consecutive year.
“A SHRM-aligned human resources (HR) curriculum tells a student that Alvernia’s program meets SHRM’s defined HR educational standards and courses are high quality, taught by expert practitioners,” said Dr. Beth Berret, associate professor of business. “A SHRM-aligned program tells an employer that a student meets SHRM standardized academic criteria. Expectations of students include participation in an internship or shadow experience to complete their academic experience.”
Approximately 425 educational institutions have been acknowledged by SHRM as being in alignment with its HR Curriculum Guidebook. Alvernia has remained aligned with SHRM since January 2012 even when standards for alignment were updated in 2018.
Students enrolled in Alvernia’s SHRM-aligned HR program are given the opportunity to earn their SHRM-CP credentials prior to graduating, providing them with a competitive advantage in the job market. The program is also listed in the SHRM-aligned HR program directory which allows students who meet the requirements to apply to take the SHRM-CP certification exam at student pricing.
“Dr. Beth Berret’s passionate and continual pursuit of delivering a high-quality human resources program positions our graduates to make an immediate impact,” said Dr. Travis Berger, dean of the College of Business, Communication, and Leadership, Alvernia University.
“This designation confirms that we are preparing our HR students to tackle the issues of today, such as quiet quitting, employee engagement, talent acquisition, retention, and labor management. As an award-winning professor who serves as the faculty advisor for the Society of Human Resource Management, and who has a long-standing and deep connection with the Berks County Chapter of SHRM, Dr. Berret continues to be a leader in the human resources field.”
The Alvernia SHRM Student Chapter, sponsored by the Berks County SHRM Chapter, encourages member students to participate in local, regional, and national professional conferences and to network with employer representatives. Combining classroom and experiential learning, business education at Alvernia provides the foundations for careers in human resources, accounting, finance, marketing, and specialized areas of management. Students learn from accomplished practitioners with decades of experience in their respective fields and regularly research and publish on the latest business trends. Every program emphasizes ethical business practices in the spirit of the University’s Franciscan tradition.
Last year, Alvernia was nationally recognized for its business programs.
