Map Out Opportunities and Level-Up Skills
We created the IDEALS Plan to help students identify opportunities they would like to pursue at Iowa State and to help them figure out what they can gain by participating. The inverse is also true! Students can identify skills they want to improve and find opportunities to do so.
Use the IDEALS Plan alongside your Degree Plan to help tell the whole story of your Iowa State experience.
What are your ideals?
ideal (noun)
- a standard of perfection, beauty, or excellence
- one regarded as exemplifying an ideal and often taken as a model for imitation
- an ultimate object or aim of endeavor
- a subset of a mathematical ring that is closed under addition and subtraction and contains the products of any given element of the subset with each element of the ring
Ignoring the fourth definition of "ideal" (no advanced math required here!), we can see that it means essentially "something to aim for that is held at a very high standard".
One of the wonderful things about this term is that it is subjective: each person has their own standards for ideals. An a example would be ideals for living spaces: some people really like minimalist spaces with little clutter, others thrive with lots of things to look at, and still more like something in-between.
What is the IDEALS Plan?
The IDEALS Plan is a worksheet that you can download or pick up in-person.
We created the Pathways IDEALS Plan to help students identify opportunities they would like to pursue at Iowa State and to help them figure out what they can gain by participating. The inverse is also true! Students can identify skills they want to improve and find opportunities to do so.
IDEALS stands for:
Innovation
Development
Experiences
Activities
Leadership
Skills
The IDEALS Plan is meant to be used in conjunction with your Four-Year or Degree Plan to tell the story of what you did, do, and plan to do at Iowa State.
"I wish [the IDEALS plan] was something I had earlier in my college career so I could have laid out all I wanted to accomplish and maybe try harder to talk about those things with my advisor in order to accomplish them."
- Rylee Guajardo, Junior, Agricultural Business
What are the IDEALS?
Let's break down the types of opportunities that could be included in each of the "IDEALS":
Innovation: critical thinking, problem-solving, entrepreneurship, creative endeavors, innovation challenges
Development: personal growth, interpersonal growth, professional development, career readiness, advanced degree readiness, the Pathways program
Experiences: study away (domestic or international), internships, volunteering or service projects, competitions, performances
Activities: clubs, club/intramural sports and athletics, hobbies, Greek life, art, music
Leadership: ambassador, peer mentor, STAR, Cyclone Aide, DIS leader, supervisory role at work
Skills: any specific skill or ability you would like to elevate at Iowa State. For a list of examples, visit this link!
Getting Started with the IDEALS Plan
1. Get a blank plan
Option 1: Download the fillable PDF version. Mobile version coming soon!
Follow these instructions to print your digital version: Print the IDEALS Plan
Option 2: Print your own blank version: download printable blank copy
Recommended: 2 letter-size pages taped together in the middle
Option 3: Pick up a blank copy in 0020 Curtiss Hall (Student Services) during business hours.
Benefits of pickup: Nice paper! Extra large!
Dimensions: 17" x 11", or twice the width of a letter-size piece of paper (8.5" x 11")
2. Add what you've already done
How have you been involved already and what have you gained?
Use the skill word bank to help you identify some specific abilities you now have as a result of your involvement.
3. Identify some IDEALS
What would you like to do going forward?
There are so many opportunities for involvement all over campus! Consider things you haven't tried that you would like to, or even something you've never even considered.
Explore the search function on the Learn by Doing page to find some great opportunities and their related skills.
Some questions to consider as you do this:
What do you want to accomplish?
What can help you get there?
Who are you and who do you want to be?
4. Consult your mentors
The Pathways coordinators, your academic advisor, a peer mentor, a trusted professor, career services...
Student success is our #1 priority here at Iowa State, and success means all kinds of success. Share your plan with those you trust and be open to new opportunities and ideas!