Submitted by Carri Gerber, gerber.140@osu.edu
We are excited to announce an expanded career development partnership with the College of Food, Agricultural, and Environmental Sciences (CFAES) Career Development Team starting this fall. It will provide a more robust and structured career development plan for all new students at the CFAES Wooster campus. This curricular and career partnership will introduce all new students to career exploration, planning, and implementation during their first semester on campus through their introductory GENSTDS 1201.01T course.
“A similar partnership between academics and careers has already show success on the Columbus campus in the FAES 1100 introductory course and we are excited to roll it out to students on the CFAES Wooster campus as well”, said Adam Cahill, CFAES Career Development Manager. “Over the last five years, NFYS students and transfer students in these classes have met with career advisors during their first semester to start their career conversations and it has led to greater engagement and more intentional career planning for students.”
Because of this shown success, this partnership initiative will become a permanent part of orientation in Wooster. Led by Wooster campus staff Denise Rotavera-Krain, Career Advisor & College Success Counselor and Cate Hunko, Transition Counselor, Wooster students will have the same opportunity for curricular introductory career development.
Three Simple Steps
The first step in this initiative is to intentionally introduce all new students to career development. This Autumn, Denise will visit all Orientation (GENSTDS 1201.01T) classes where students will learn the steps for preparing for their career, who can assist them, and how to use the resources available to them to accomplish their career goals.
The second step involves each student meeting with a career advisor at least one time in their first semester as a required component to the Orientation class. In a 2015 study conducted by Iwankow, 100% of students who felt prepared for workforce at graduation, sketched out a plan with a career professional by the end of their first semester in college. Denise, Adam, and CFAES Career Advisors Caitlin Conrad and Chelsea Ratell will be available for in-person and zoom appointments to work with students on their plans during these introductory appointments.
Topics discussed at this appointment will include walking students through a career planning roadmap developed by the CFAES career team and how to utilize Handshake, Ohio State’s free career job networking system for students and alumni. Having made a connection with each student, career development advisors will then encourage each student to set up a second appointment after week ten, to discuss more in-depth career plans.
The third step in this initiative is to increase the volume of students reaching out for career development appointments. All Career Development inquiries will be handled by the CFAES Career Team. Students will have opportunities to meet with a career development advisor either in person or via zoom. Students continuing on to Columbus will already have familiarity with the career development staff and ensure a smooth transition. In addition, as it is essential for two -year students to work on career development as soon as they arrive on campus, they will have the opportunity to build a working relationship with at least one career development advisor to assist them in preparing for work after college.
This partnership is part of a larger plan to infuse career development and career readiness into several parts of college students’ experiences to ensure that they remain competitive in the job market and workforce.