The Canadian agri-food sector is at the forefront of facing the demands of a rapidly growing global population while endeavouring to maintain environmental sustainability as a strategic priority. To meet and overcome the imminent challenges associated with a growing world, the agri-food sector is in need of a workforce of qualified individuals with transversal skills that can cross disciplines, innovate, and solve real-world problems.

Experiential learning in higher education provides valuable opportunities for students to harness essential transversal skills. At the University of Guelph, the Arrell Food Institute developed a course aimed at bridging the gap between traditional graduate education and workplace readiness for the agri-food sector, called UNIV 6050: Innovation and Entrepreneurship in Agri-Food Systems. This course was designed to allow graduate students from diverse fields to develop transversal skills through interdisciplinary, problem-based collaboration while solving a challenge for a variety of community partners in the agri-food sector. Participating community partners included representatives from government, industry and non profit businesses from the sector.

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the impacts of UNIV 6050 on transversal skill development by assessing the perception and experiences of graduate students from previous course offerings. In 2022, a post-evaluation survey for UNIV 6050 was developed and disseminated to four cohorts of graduate students who participated in the course from 2017 to 2021, comprised of 89 graduate students in total. Key skills that were evaluated included written communication, oral communication, critical thinking, problem solving, creativity, leadership, independence, teamwork, organization, business awareness and use of technology. Surveys were completed by 26 respondents (30% response rate) across all four cohorts.

Survey results revealed that approximately 77% of respondents had a positive or extremely positive experience with UNIV 6050. Moreover, out of the 11 evaluated skills, business awareness, leadership and teamwork were three of the most developed skills reported by respondents after completing the course. These findings highlight the value and potential of problem-based collaborative learning in developing the skill sets of graduate students from diverse disciplines and the importance of engagement with community partners from the sector. Outcomes of this study can lead to further improvement and delivery of UNIV 6050 or similar programs, ensuring that graduate students can be better prepared and equipped to tackle real-world challenges in the agri-food sector and beyond.

Keywords: Agri-food sector, community partnerships, innovation, interdisciplinary group work, problem-based collaboration, transversal, transferable, employability, 21st century skills, workplace readiness, oral and written communication, critical thinking, leadership, independence.