Building event management skills through authentic assessment

With a greater focus on employability upon graduation, universities are increasingly considering how the course experience links to knowledge and skill development. To assist with skill development, industry practice and authentic activities should be embedded into the curriculum. Designing and including authentic assessment helps to replicate real-life industry scenarios which support students’ development of professional competencies. This study examines an authentic assessment of planning and operating an event within an event management topic. Data was collected through a survey of students, and additionally the reflective practitioner approach was used to consider the development of the curriculum. This study found that students gained a greater understanding of the event process by, for example, using stakeholder theory in order to prioritise event objectives, produce a project plan including key milestones, and develop risk management strategies. Communication, time management and content management were identified as key areas of skill development by students.