Veidlapa Nr. M-3 (8)

Course Description Status: Approved

Course Description Version: 26/27.R.1.00

Description Period: 2026./27 academic year rudens semestris

Study Course Accepted: -

Study Course Description

Career Design: Design Thinking in Career and Life

Main Study Course Information

Course Code
SZF_272
Branch of Science
Economics and Business
ECTS
3.00
Target Audience
Business Management
LQF
Level 6
Study Type And Form
Full-Time

Study Course Implementer

Course Supervisor
Anita Gaile
Structure Unit Manager
Ieva Puzo
Structural Unit
Faculty of Social Sciences
Contacts

SZF, Kuldigas Street 9C, szf@rsu.lv

About Study Course

Objective

The aim of the course is to prepare first-year undergraduate students for proactive life and career management by developing a design thinking mindset. This includes the ability to identify strengths and market needs, prototype professional offerings, and communicate them effectively to potential employers or clients.

Preliminary Knowledge

No formal prior knowledge of economics or business is required; however, active participation and an openness to a new mindset are essential.

Learning Outcomes

Knowledge

1.Understands the principles of design thinking and is able to apply them to business and personal life.

Individual work and tests

Good moments diary • A mental map of career ideas • Alternative life path maps • Career prototype conversation

2.The core elements of the "Designing Your Life" (DYL) self-discovery methodology.

Individual work and tests

Career prototype conversation • Alternative life path maps • Good moments diary • A mental map of career ideas

3.Defines the customer issue and value offer.

Individual work and tests

Employer profile • Employee's offer • One-pager offer

4.Will be able to build a personal brand in a digital environment (LinkedIn).

Individual work and tests

LinkedIn profile • LinkedIn content Plan

5.Maintaining the professional contact circle.

Individual work and tests

Contact Management system

6.Will be familiar with the principles of personal finance (budgeting, risk management).

Skills

1.Use prototyping techniques to test career ideas.

2.Conduct elementary market research, including conducting employer-client interviews.

Individual work and tests

One-pager test interview • Career prototype conversation

3.Maintain a professional LinkedIn profile.

Individual work and tests

LinkedIn content Plan • LinkedIn profile

4.Create a service single page for the employer or customer.

Individual work and tests

One-pager offer

5.Develop a personal homepage with AI tools.

Individual work and tests

Personal website

6.Organize your personal work and task load.

Individual work and tests

Work planning experiment and reflection

Competences

1.Make informed personal and professional decisions.

Individual work and tests

Alternative life path maps • A mental map of career ideas • Good moments diary

2.Take responsibility for your development by using rapid prototyping as a daily tool.

Individual work and tests

Alternative life path maps

3.Identify your unique strengths and turn them into a value proposition.

Individual work and tests

Employee's offer

4.Maintain authentic professional relationships through a personal brand.

Assessment

Individual work

Title
% from total grade
Grade
1.

Good moments diary
5.00% from total grade
Test

A structured activity and energy self-observation log identifying personal “flow” states and sources of satisfaction.

Breakdown of points for the transfer (5% in total):

  • Not submitted (0%): work not submitted within the deadline.
  • Submitted (2.5%): The job has been executed according to the instructions and uploaded to the system.
  • Participation (2.5%): a student participates in a class in which they register using automatic self-registration.
2.

A mental map of career ideas
5.00% from total grade
Test

A visual collection of a brainstorm that systemizes a student’s interests, skills and potential directions of professional activity.

Breakdown of points for the transfer (5% in total):

  • Not submitted (0%): work not submitted within the deadline.
  • Submitted (2.5%): The job has been executed according to the instructions and uploaded to the system.
  • Participation (2.5%): a student participates in a class in which they register using automatic self-registration.
3.

Alternative life path maps
5.00% from total grade
Test

Three distinct five-year future scenarios (Odyssey plans) that visualise different career trajectories and the resources they need.

Breakdown of points per transfer (5% in total):

  • not submitted (0%): work not submitted within the deadline.
  • Submitted (2.5%): The job has been executed according to the instructions and uploaded to the system.
  • Participation (2.5%): a student participates in a class in which they register using automatic self-registration.
4.

Career prototype conversation
10.00% from total grade
Test

Summary of a structured interview with a field professional, including lessons learned about the reality of the chosen profession.

Breakdown of points for the transfer (10% in total):

  • Not submitted (0%): work not submitted within the deadline.
  • Submitted (5%): The job has been executed as instructed and uploaded to the system.
  • Participation (5%): a student participates in a class in which they register using automatic self-registration.
5.

Employer profile
5.00% from total grade
Test

An in-depth study of the target organisation or industry defining its current challenges and necessary competences.

Breakdown of points for the transfer (5% in total):

  • Not submitted (0%): work not submitted within the deadline.
  • Submitted (2.5%): The job has been executed according to the instructions and uploaded to the system.
  • Participation (2.5%): a student participates in a class in which they register using automatic self-registration.
6.

Employee's offer
5.00% from total grade
Test

A reasoned personal value offer (value position) formulated as a solution for specific employer needs.

Breakdown of points for the transfer (5% in total):

  • Not submitted (0%): work not submitted within the deadline.
  • Submitted (2.5%): The job has been executed according to the instructions and uploaded to the system.
  • Participation (2.5%): a student participates in a class in which they register using automatic self-registration.
7.

One-pager offer
5.00% from total grade
Test

A focused, visually structured personal brand Summary (one-pager) designed for instant presentation of professional capacity.

Breakdown of points for the transfer (5% in total):

  • Not submitted (0%): work not submitted within the deadline.
  • Submitted (2.5%): The job has been executed according to the instructions and uploaded to the system.
  • Participation (2.5%): a student participates in a class in which they register using automatic self-registration.
8.

One-pager test interview
10.00% from total grade
Test

A self-reflection message or video recording of presenting an offer to an employer, assessing their ability to persuade and reasoning.

Breakdown of points for the transfer (10% in total):

  • Not submitted (0%): work not submitted within the deadline.
  • Submitted (5%): The job has been executed as instructed and uploaded to the system.
  • Participation (5%): a student participates in a class in which they register using automatic self-registration.
9.

Personal website
10.00% from total grade
Test

A functioning digital portfolio developed with AI programming tools (cursor) demonstrating a student’s skill and body of work.

Breakdown of points for the transfer (10% in total):

  • Not submitted (0%): work not submitted within the deadline.
  • Submitted (5%): The job has been executed as instructed and uploaded to the system.
  • Participation (5%): a student participates in a class in which they register using automatic self-registration.
10.

LinkedIn profile
5.00% from total grade
Test

Professional networking platform profile optimized to personal brand strategy and industry standards.

Breakdown of points for the transfer (10% in total):

  • Not submitted (0%): work not submitted within the deadline.
  • Submitted (5%): The job has been executed as instructed and uploaded to the system.
  • Participation (5%): a student participates in a class in which they register using automatic self-registration.
11.

LinkedIn content Plan
5.00% from total grade
Test

Calendar schedule with prepared draft recordings aimed at demonstrating expertise and attracting a professional audience.

Breakdown of points for the transfer (5% in total):

  • Not submitted (0%): work not submitted within the deadline.
  • Submitted (2.5%): The job has been executed according to the instructions and uploaded to the system.
  • Participation (2.5%): a student participates in a class in which they register using automatic self-registration.
12.

Contact Management system
5.00% from total grade
Test

Created and populated data framework (CRM) for networking activity planning and professional relationship maintenance.

Breakdown of points for the transfer (5% in total):

  • Not submitted (0%): work not submitted within the deadline.
  • Submitted (2.5%): The job has been executed according to the instructions and uploaded to the system.
  • Participation (2.5%): a student participates in a class in which they register using automatic self-registration.
13.

Work planning experiment and reflection
5.00% from total grade
Test

An analytical overview of the testing of selected productivity methods and their impact on the quality of work.

Breakdown of points for the transfer (5% in total):

  • Not submitted (0%): work not submitted within the deadline.
  • Submitted (2.5%): The job has been executed according to the instructions and uploaded to the system.
  • Participation (2.5%): a student participates in a class in which they register using automatic self-registration.

Examination

Title
% from total grade
Grade
1.

Course presentation
20.00% from total grade
Test

Synthesis report on the results achieved throughout the course, defining the next steps to realize career design.

The course view presentation is evaluated with the following distribution (20% in total):

  • not submitted (0%): presentation and video not submitted within the due date.
  • Submitted (5%): presentation executed and uploaded to.
  • Participation (5%): student presents during class.
  • Teacher rating (10%): The teacher evaluates the presentation in the lesson.

A student needs to receive at least 60% of the points from submitting betrayals and participating in classes in order to pass the course successfully.

Study Course Theme Plan

FULL-TIME
Part 1

  1. Lecture

Modality
Location
Contact hours
On site
Study room
2

Topics

Design as a way of thinking
Description

Introduction to design thinking as principles by which to develop entrepreneurship and personal life, outlining course goals and key betrayals.

  1. Class/Seminar

Modality
Location
Contact hours
On site
Study room
2

Topics

Personal compass
Description

The lesson is dedicated to creating a compass of life by reconciling the vision of work and life using the self-aware methodology of life design.

  1. Class/Seminar

Modality
Location
Contact hours
On site
Study room
2

Topics

Development of career ideas
Description

Students practice making three diametrically different but exciting 5-year plans and reinforce the setting of goals using the self-aware methodology of life design.

  1. Class/Seminar

Modality
Location
Contact hours
On site
Study room
2

Topics

Career prototyping
Description

This session introduces prototyping techniques that allow small, fast experiments to test personal career/life paths using a life design self-aware methodology.

  1. Class/Seminar

Modality
Location
Contact hours
On site
Study room
2

Topics

Employer profile
Description

The lesson aims to teach students to find and define a painful market need by building a detailed profile of their employer or customers, clearly labeling their target audience.

  1. Class/Seminar

Modality
Location
Contact hours
On site
Study room
2

Topics

Employee's value proposition
Description

Students learn to formulate a clear and different offer for an employer or poetencial client, using the value offer canvas and taking into account their strengths.

  1. Class/Seminar

Modality
Location
Contact hours
On site
Study room
2

Topics

Proposal prototyping
Description

The lesson serves as an introduction to the development of the betrayal, defining the purpose and structure of the single page, including the inclusion of effective call of action (CTA) and elements of trust.

  1. Class/Seminar

Modality
Location
Contact hours
On site
Study room
2

Topics

Quote testing
Description

The session provides practical skills for effectively conducting customer interviews to ask the right questions and get authentic feedback about the existence of a problem and the adequacy of the solution.

  1. Class/Seminar

Modality
Location
Contact hours
On site
Study room
2

Topics

Personal website
Description

The practice focuses on creating a homepage using advanced AI programming tools (cursor), version control (GitHub), and automatic deployment (Vercel). Students learn how to get from a sketch to a live product, understanding the basic principles of programming through an AI assistant.

  1. Class/Seminar

Modality
Location
Contact hours
On site
Study room
2

Topics

Personal brand
Description

This session is dedicated to devolution, in which students learn to use their personal compass as the foundation of the brand, building their LinkedIn profile as a professional platform.

  1. Class/Seminar

Modality
Location
Contact hours
On site
Study room
2

Topics

Creating professional content
Description

The session aims to turn a static profile into a dynamic professional communications tool by auditing LinkedIn profiles and learning content planning principles.

  1. Class/Seminar

Modality
Location
Contact hours
On site
Study room
2

Topics

Maintenance of professional relationships
Description

Students learn how to build authentic professional relationships using a strategic approach to networking to access the hidden labour market and gain valuable information about the industry of interest.

  1. Class/Seminar

Modality
Location
Contact hours
On site
Study room
2

Topics

Personal resilience
Description

Students learn how to structure their workday to increase efficiency while maintaining mental health and avoiding burnout, a frequent risk when working on their projects.

  1. Class/Seminar

Modality
Location
Contact hours
On site
Study room
2

Topics

Personal finance
Description

The lesson teaches the basics of budgeting and how a student can manage risks on a personal and small business level with practical tools and strategies.

  1. Class/Seminar

Modality
Location
Contact hours
On site
Study room
2

Topics

Final presentations
Description

Students present their path at 3pm from first idea and “compass of life” to a functioning homepage and first networking results.

  1. Class/Seminar

Modality
Location
Contact hours
On site
Study room
2

Topics

Conclusion of the course
Description

The final lesson is about discussing the lessons learned. After presentations, students look back at their growth, get total feedback and define how they will continue to use the tools they learned after the course ends.
Total ECTS (Creditpoints):
3.00
Contact hours:
32 Academic Hours
Final Examination:
Exam

Bibliography

Required Reading

1.

Vianna, M., Vianna, Y., Adler, I., Lucena, B. et al. 2014. Design Thinking: Business Innovation. Rio de Janeiro: MJV Press. [viewed 25.02.2026.]. (akceptējams izdevums)Suitable for English stream

2.

Cooper, B., Vlaskovits, P. and Ries, E. 2016. The Lean Entrepreneur: How Visionaries Create Products, Innovate with New Ventures, and Disrupt Markets. Hoboken: John Wiley & Sons. 2nd ed. [viewed 25.02.2026.].Suitable for English stream

Additional Reading

1.

Tyson, E. 2021. Personal Finance in Your 20s and 30s for Dummies. 3rd ed. Hoboken: John Wiley & Sons. [viewed 25.02.2026.].Suitable for English stream

2.

Tracy, B. 2014. Time Management (The Brian Tracy Success Library). New York: AMACOM. [viewed 25.02.2026.].

3.

Brown, R. 2013. Build Your Reputation: Grow Your Personal Brand for Career and Business Success. Chichester: John Wiley & Sons. [viewed 25.02.2026.].Suitable for English stream

4.

Grant, W. 2018. 101 UX Principles: A Definitive Design Guide. Birmingham: Packt Publishing. [viewed 25.02.2026.].

Other Information Sources

1.

Bailey, C. 2019. How to Get Your Brain to Focus [video]. YouTube. [viewed 25.02.2026.].

2.

Stanford Life Design Lab. 2018. Designing Your Life: Creating Odyssey Plans [video sērija]. YouTube. [viewed 25.02.2026.].

3.

Harvard Business School Online. 2025. Seven Skills for Success: How Young Professionals Can Future-Proof Their Careers. [viewed 25.02.2026.].Suitable for English stream

4.

Arruda, W. 2025. 3 Steps To An Authentic, Differentiated, And Compelling Personal Brand. Forbes. [viewed 25.02.2026.].

5.

Wells, R. 2025. 5 Simple Ways To Make More Money As A Freelancer In 2025. Forbes. [viewed 25.02.2026.].Suitable for English stream

6.

Newport, C. 2024. Core Idea: Slow Productivity [video]. YouTube. [viewed 25.02.2026.].

7.

Tech With Tim. 2024. Cursor Vibe Coding Tutorial - For COMPLETE Beginners (No Experience Needed) [video]. YouTube. [viewed 25.02.2026.].Suitable for English stream