What You Will Learn

ELI students learn leadership skills the fall quarter and put these skills into practice during the winter and spring quarters.  Whether students work independently on their ELI project or in a partnership or team, they work collaboratively with their peers to gain invaluable skills that will help during their project implementation and in future careers.  

During the ELI program, students work on:

  • Networking
  • Developing a Project Idea
  • Conducting Informational Interviews
  • Pitching their Project Idea
  • Analyzing a Project Landscape
  • Conducting Project Impact Analysis
  • Applying for Project Funding
  • Working in Collaboration
  • Presenting Project Ideas
  • Identifying Project and Skill Needs
  • Working with a Mentor
  • Developing Sustainable Leadership Practices

With support from instructors, guest speakers, and peers, ELI students enhance their ELI project ideas and the skills needed to successfully bring these ideas to fruition.
 

Who You Will Meet

ELI students repeatedly report the value of meeting other like-minded, driven students, and learning about campus activities and groups.  ELI students also work collaboratively with the ELI Program Manager as well as an expert mentor selected specifically for them.  Students report that mentorship through the ELI experience is invaluable in not only helping them navigate through the implementation of their ELI projects but also in developing essential career skills and in some cases in finding internship and employment opportunities. Due to the interactive nature of the fall workshop course, ELI students also benefit from and have the opportunity to connect with expert guest speakers.
 

What Can You Expect

In addition to the fall course and winter and spring quarter implementation outlined on the Overview page, ELI students enjoy learning from and getting to know their peers through team-building assignments in class; social events during winter and spring quarters meant to keep ELI students connected; and a celebratory catered capstone event with mentors, family, colleagues, and other interested community members.  Planned for the 2022-3 academic year, ELI students will also have the opportunity to take their mentor on a paid coffeeshop (or other) meet-up with their mentor and to enjoy a mentor-student mixer event.  
 

What Our Alum Say

 

“ELI is a great way to learn more about the campus and local community while building your leadership skills and working on a project you are passionate about.”  

--Carissa Garcia
 

 

 

 

“The ELI program has easily been the top highlight of my academic career at UCSB. The lessons learned and skills acquired combined with the opportunity to fully pursue a project I am passionate about have been blessings that I am so grateful for!”

--Justin Memenas
 

“I learned a lot about how to reach out to people you hope to learn from and ask them for help which is a life skill that I definitely needed to work on. ELI gave me a safe space to practice this skill in a low risk, high reward setting.”

--Lillian Marcos
 

“ELI encouraged me to think seriously about my role as a leader and my future career options.”

--Lauren Sullivan 
 

“Joining ELI was the best decision I could have made to enhance my academic experience at UCSB. I have been able to use my ELI experience as a great talking point in job interviews also.”

--Oliver Wallace
 

“The ELI process encouraged me to take ownership of my future and made me a more grounded, confident leader. The diversity of my cohort's projects highlighted how everything is connected to our environment and what we're doing to ensure its protection. This was a unique college experience I'm very grateful I had the chance to participate in.”

--Jian Hong Shi
 

“I learned so much about what it takes to run a successful club on campus as well as about myself as a leader. This program allowed me to gain confidence in my abilities as well as feel like I am making a real impact in my community.”

--Quinn Costello
 

“My favorite part of ELI was meeting a great group of driven, friendly, and creative people that shared my care for environmental issues!”

--Samuel Fuller