KAPM Questionnaire: Featuring Jennifer Morin

Written by Cara Olivo

Big shout out to the person of the day, Jennifer Morin! She is the Project Management professor for Integrated Business and also plays a huge role in running KAPM.

She impacts students’ lives and education every day and last week she shared with me exactly what she thought of the organization and why it is so beneficial for students.

In this short questionnaire, She highlights everything KAPM has to offer and why it was created for students here at UCF. 

What exactly is KAPM and what can students benefit from the most from joining?

Knights Association of Project Management (KAPM) is a UCF Registered Student Organization that prepares students for careers in project management and provides unique opportunities for learning, gaining experience, and networking with project management professionals, faculty, and other students who are passionate about project management. KAPM offers its student members a number of benefits, including opportunities to attend guest speaker events, training and development sessions and workshops, social events, university, and college events, and to support project efforts by organizations both on and off-campus. Additionally, many of our events offer business students the opportunity to earn GEB points for meeting their career course requirements as well.

What skills are needed to be in the association? What skills do you get out of participating?

KAPM is open to all disciplines and majors, so students with various areas of interest and skills are welcome to join. Students who join and actively participate in the organization can expect to gain a wide variety of skills and knowledge, such as technical project management skills (both traditional and agile), communication, networking, teamwork, and leadership skills. 

What is your favorite activity/event that KAPM participates in? 

It is difficult to choose only one event or activity because I believe they are all so valuable and rewarding for our students. We also offer a wide variety of programming as well, from speakers in The Exchange to workshops in a small classroom setting to social events like our end-of-semester party that provides much-needed celebration. One of my favorite past events was the PMI Central Florida Holiday Gala in 2017 when KAPM received an award for outstanding achievements. We typically take a small group of students to this event every year and it continues to provide a unique opportunity for our students to network with professionals. I enjoy all of our events and activities, though! 

What made you want to start KAPM? 

Ghada Baz, Lead Faculty for Project Management, started the organization and, together, we serve as KAPM’s faculty advisers. When Professor Baz told me about KAPM, it seemed like the perfect opportunity to foster the development of students who are considering a career in project management from all disciplines across campus, not just business students, and for students who are in various stages of their academic and professional journeys.
For example, some students may have experience professionally managing projects and are interested in learning more about project management certifications while networking with PM professionals and potential employers in the area. On the other hand, many students may be very early in their academic career and do not yet have work experience, but want to find out more about what project management is while gaining valuable knowledge, skills, and experiences in PM while meeting other students with similar interests and goals.
Enrolling in or completing the MAN 4583: Project Management course (required for Integrated Business and Management students) is not a prerequisite for joining the organization, although many students who have taken or are currently taking the course to decide to join, which we absolutely love! I view KAPM as an incredible opportunity to extend the knowledge and skills our course provides to students enrolled in any major at UCF and in any class-standing, from freshman to senior. I decided to serve KAPM as a faculty adviser because of my passion for project management and dedication to our students’ success – it is my privilege to serve our students in this role!

To join, please request to join via Knight Connect (https://knightconnect.campuslabs.com/engage/organization/knightsassociationofprojectmanagement)
and email Jennifer.morin@ucf.edu (Faculty Adviser) or Alisha Taylor (Secretary) at Alisha.Taylor8@knights.ucf.edu for more details.

Join us on Tuesday, November 5th, at 10:00 AM at The EXCHANGE to learn more about what it’s like to be a project manager.  This interview event is part of PM in the AM, a series in which Ms. Ghada Baz hosts engaging conversations with professionals in the field of project management.  Her next guest is Mr. Erik Van Horn, CAPM, Project Manager at UCF IT.