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Ask a question from your peers to help you in your professional work. Seek different points of view on a topic that interests you. Start a thought-provoking conversation about a hot, current topic. Encourage your peers to join you in the discussion, and feel free to facilitate the discussion. As a community of educators, all members of the Career Ed Lounge are empowered to act as a discussion facilitator to help us all learn from each other.

Experiential Learning

Work Study: I believe that the level of success has largely been dependent on the motivation of the student worker. We have had Federal Work Study and we have had a temporary work program for and external One Stop individual wishing to gain practical experience towards a more permanent position. In every case, there were opportunities to gain technical skill, knowledge and social skills. Overall, I would say there was personal and professional growth for the majority.

Event Programming

While several of the suggestions mentioned are utilized or incorporated in the student learning experience at our school, the idea of holding a Networking Mixer appeals to me as a new way of encouraging students and graduates to practice their communication and presentation skills in a fun environment. We held a "Block Party" once which was meant to enhance awareness of our school and its mission to our business neighbors as well as promote dialouge within our industry's local community thru an informal forum held before the block party began. It was a fair amount of work to coordinate but a successful venture overall. I think it would be good to try something like this again only tailor it more for the students to apply what they are taught regarding their "soft skills" in a professional environment.

Barriers to Employment and Intervention Strategies

The most common barrier I have seen in regard to employability would be varying market trends. Although our institution does ample amount of research, local markets may differ from national trends. In order to address this issue, I believe that campuses should be more educated on which programs are employable in their communities. If admissions did not enroll into these programs, perhaps that location would then discontinue them and concentrate on programs that have better job placement.

Institution-Wide Participation

Our institution uses a very systematic approach. Each department communicates regularly with all other departments to ensure we are all doing our very best for our students. As Career Management Director, I meet regularly with our admissions staff, to communicate issues with new enrollments in our first career meeting (after enrollment, but before classes begin). I also meet regularly with our Campus President to keep him apprised of what is happening in the community (employment rates, new offices opening, problems with placement in a specific program, hiring trends, etc.) The Academic Dean communicates to me and all of the other departments about specific issues with a student, or a program, and we all make a concerted effort to remedy the situation and improve for the future. We meet as a group once a week to discuss all of this formally, but we all communicate daily on day-to-day concerns or emergencies. Additionally, we meet quarterly for a Campus Effectiveness meeting where we talk about our goals and progress, and the metrics and outcomes for each department. I feel that these methods have been very effective in ensuring the success of multiples departments, and employability and satisfaction of our students and graduates.

The Placement Model

THE GROWTH OF ONLINE SCHOOLS THAT DID NOT EXIXT IN THE 19TH.THE FACT THAT PEOPLE TEND TO HAVE SEVERASL CAREERS OVER THEIR LIFE TIME AND NEED MORE THAN GETTING THEIR FIRST JOB

One-stop Shopping for Professional Networking Links

Is there an existing list of professional networking sites that could be used as a handout to students? If so, where is it found?

Non Traditional Student Buy-In

The majority of students attending this campus are non-traditional and some are very reluctant to joining social media because they do not feel it is necessary, despite career services attempts to convince these students that a social presence is needed. Any best practices on "selling" social media activity to this type of student?

New to Career Services AND Social Media

After almost 20 years as a government employee, where absence from social media is encouraged, I made a career switch to Career Services, where a social media presence is paramount. How does one in this situation quickly build a presence & rapport on social media? Which media would be best to start with?

Improving Students' & Graduates' Soft Skills

As a Career Services Advisor, I hear from employers all the time that it is not the graduates knowledge or abilities that they question, it is their soft skills. How can I, in the time I work with them on their Externships (three months) during their last term at school, can I emphasize that their soft skills need to be improved/maintained to a level of professionalism which will satisfy employers, AND, which will enable the students/graduates to be successful in their new careers?

Saving Face

What is the best way for someone that is new to the position to regain credibility with an employer that has had 2 or more negative experiences with previous interns/students?

Stay the Course

What are some best practices for helping students maintain a healthy level of confidence and motivation during the interview process, despite the fact that they may not have gotten the job offer?

Inviting Prospective Employers to Campus

An effective means of communicating with community decision-makers is to invite employers to campus for a comprehensive tour. Ahead of time, schedule an opportunity during the tour, to have the employer address one or two classes for 15 minutes during the tour. Please share your thoughts.

The "objective" section of the resume

Is is still acceptable to state an objective at the beginning of the resume? If not, why not?

The Ex-Offender Job Search

What is the best approach for helping the ex-offender penetrate the job market and land a job in his/her field?

Identifying Transferable Skills

Which transferable skills have you found to be the most civilian-valued and what techniques have you used to bolster these skills within the veteran student population?

Value of Soft Skills

What role do soft skills play in veteran career success?

Companies Supporting Military Personnel

Which techniques do you use to help identify companies seeking to hire military personnel?

SIGNIFICANT CRITISM OF THE TRADITIONAL 19TH CENTURY PLACEMENT MODEL

IT HAS BEEN COMPLETELY INEFECTIVE IN GETTING GRADUATES JOB. IT DOES NOT KEEP UP TECHNOLOGY. IT DOES NOT ADRESS THE REALITY AND NEEDS OF THE 21TH CENTURY MARKET

Military-to-Civilian Viewpoint

Why is it critical for the veteran to tailor career collateral to fit an employer’s perspective?

Expectations Are in Sight

How can recognizing hiring manager expectations be used to the veteran’s advantage prior to and during an interview?
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