The student will be able to:
A. Examine occupations, college majors and/or vocational programs that relate to their identified interests.
B. Define and clarify life and career values and summarize how they can affect future career and life planning decisions.
C. Analyze and integrate theories of personality as they relate to fields of study and career satisfaction.
D. Identify transferable and work content skills necessary for specific occupations.
E. Choose appropriate educational and career resources on campus and online for career and college major research.
F. Identify how personal beliefs, social and cultural conditioning, and workplace trends affect career choices and career planning.
G. Review current workplace trends.
H. Examine individual decision-making processes and goal setting strategies.
I. Set up and conduct an informational interview with an individual currently working in field of interest.
J. Distinguish successful components of effective resumes, cover letters, interviews and job search strategies.
K. Formulate career goals and develop a plan of action to attain those goals.
L. Select an appropriate decision making process.

A. Taking stock
1. Definition: Job vs. career
2. Career development models
3. Examine career beliefs and early influences on ones personal career development
4. Theory on job satisfaction
B. Career theories
1. Super's stages across the lifespan
2. Planned happenstance theory
3. Self-esteem theories and the connection with career choice
4. Emotional intelligence and managing emotions
5. Barriers to career exploration and how to reframe problems/situation to overcome barriers
6. Developing a strong work ethic
7. Life roles and fantasy careers
C. Choosing a major
1. Define major and why students need one
2. Identify steps to choosing a major
3. Show the connection between choosing a major and the career one works in
3. Using online tools, research college majors and pick several majors to explore in more depth
D. Career assessments
1. Personality:
a. Define Holland's work personality type theory (RAISEC)
b. Define the Myers-Briggs Type theory; identify results and explain how they relate to possible career and life satisfaction
c. Take Eureka True Colors temperament assessment to identify possible career paths
2. Interests clarification: Assess career and personal interests
a. Analyze interpretation of Strong Interest Inventory
b. Role of leisure in determining interests
c. Construct learning opportunities to develop interests
3. Skills:
a. Using Eureka, SkillScan, or other card sort inventories, assess current skills students have and skills want they want to develop and use at work
b. Identify skills employers are looking for
c. Define transferable skills and work content skills
d. Construct learning opportunities to develop skills necessary to be successful in evolving world of work
4. Values:
a. Define Maslow's need hierarchy
b. Create working definition of what values are
c. Assess personal values and explain how values influence career choice
5. Clarify barriers to successful career decision
6. Synthesize information from self-assessment of beliefs, work place skills, personality, temperament, values, skills, and interests and construct a tentative career action plan reflecting identified values, skills, and interests
E. Career research
1. Learn how to use online career research tools like O*NET and Eureka
2. Career mapping to identify personal life trends that can guide what a student would want to research
3. Evaluate research information and apply to the career action plan
4. Using social media like LinkedIn and Facebook to find jobs and follow companies
F. Career trends: Recognize the changing nature of the workplace, including the changing roles of men, women, minorities, and special populations as related to work, family, and leisure activities
1. Trends in the future job market in a global economy
2. Understanding the changing nature of the workplace (global and technological impacts)
3. Research individual areas of career interest
4. Collection of career-related data and information using the internet and publication research
G. Informational interview
1. Rationale for conducting an informational interview, components of the informational interview, and how to do it
2. Identify person of interest to interview
3. Conduct interview
4. Write paper summarizing interview and comparing/contrasting with the research they found on the career
5. Present findings in class
H. Internships and volunteer experience
1. What is an internship, why is it important, resources to find internships
2. How is volunteer experience different than internships. What are the benefits of this type of experience? How can volunteer experience enrich your well-being?
I. Decision making and goal setting
1. Decision making styles: Implications of social and cultural influences on the decision making process
2. SWOT decision making model
3. Common decision making mistakes and how to fix them
4. Goal definition and goal setting
5. Vision board
6. Career action plan: Critical examination of all career assessments, research completed decision making models, and integrating information into a career plan
J. Job search
1. Job search process
a. Examination of effective job search strategies
b. Identify job descriptions and how to use key words
c. Evaluate
2. Resume:
a. Uses of resumes
b. Types of resumes
c. Development of a resume
d. Development of a LinkedIn profile
3. Cover letter
a. Components of an effective cover letter
b. Development of a cover letter
4. Uses of social media
a. How to effectively use social media in the job search

Not applicable.

A. Quizzes
B. Exams
C. Oral presentations
D. In-class written assignments
E. Out-of-class written assignments

A. Lecture presentations and class discussion using the language of career planning
B. Multi-media presentations
C. Individual and group student presentations of major projects followed by discussion and evaluation
D. Guest speakers

Boles, R. What Color Is Your Parachute? 2019 A Practical Manual for Job Hunters and Career Changers. New York: Ten Speed Press, 2018.
Borgen, F., and J. Grutter. Where do I go Next? Using your Strong Results to Manage your Career. CPP, Inc., 2005.
Sukiennik, D., W. Bendat, and L. Raufman. The Career Fitness Program: Exercising Your Options. New Jersey: Prentice Hall, 2015.
Burnett, B., and D. Evans. Designing Your Life: How to Build a Well-Lived, Joyful Life. Random House, 2016.
ISBN-10: 9781101875322
Optional Reading:
Kalil, C. Follow Your True Colors. Wilsonville: Bookpartners, Inc., 1998.
Tieger, P., and B. Barron-Rieger. Do What You Are: Discover the Perfect Career for You Through the Secrets of Personality Type. New York, NY: Hachete Book Group USA, 2014.
Although one or more of these texts may be older than the suggested "5 years or newer" standard, it remains an industry standard.
When taught via Canvas, supplemental lectures delivered online; feedback on assignments delivered online; class discussion delivered in forums and discussion threads.
 

A. Reading assignments: Weekly reading assignments from text and outside sources ranging from 15-45 pages per week.
B. Out-of-class writing assignment examples:
1. Two page personal paper examining of how family, culture, gender, sexual orientation, disability impact beliefs of personal career options.
2. One page personal paper discussing fantasy careers and how elements of these careers may be incorporated into the career search.
3. Two page personal paper identifying potential college majors of interest including major requirements and entrance requirements for the career interest area.
4. 3-5 page research paper on a variety of occupations using career exploration resources such as Eureka and O*NET.
5. 3-5 page paper synthesizing information from self-assessment (for example, Strong Interest Inventory and the Myers Briggs Type Indicator).
6. Two page personal paper analyzing how personal values were developed and how they influence career exploration.
7. Develop 10 interview questions reflecting self-assessment information to apply to the informational interview.
8. Interview individual in a career the student is interested in. Write a two page paper comparing and contrasting the information from the interview to what was learned in the occupational research paper.
9. End-of-term vision board depicting the goal life and career the student wants.
10. Schedule an appointment with the Career Center/Internship Center to do a mock interview. Provide interviewer with job description.
C. Weekly written exercises and assignments.
D. Five page career action plan: Completion of personal essay which includes personal, career, and education goals.
E. Targeted resume for specific job description.
F. Development of a LinkedIn profile.
G. One page cover letter targeted to specific job.
H. Use of online career research tools, including but not limited to: EUREKA, O*NET, Job Search websites or LinkedIn.