How many times have you been asked that dreaded question, "So what do you want to be when you grow up?" If you have a clue how to answer that question then it is an easy one. But if you don't !!!! That's when the pressure mounts. This web quest is designed to give you some tools to use that will not only help you answer that question but will also enable you to become skilled in the job hunting search and also help you develop a career portfolio.

 

TASK

 The design of this web quest is to give you an opportunity to discover 3 or more careers you might be interested in pursuing. It has also been designed to give you the opportunity to develop a career portfolio. This portfolio will include:

 

Career Assessment Write-up

Job Description

Resume

Cover Letter

Thank you Letter (after job interview)

Reference Letter (request for 2-3 letters and than the letters)

Thank You Letter to the Reference Writers

Sample Job Application

Reflection Paper

 

PROCESS

Making the right plans for your future during these turbulent times can be difficult. Starting your self discovery with a self assessment can give you more career choices and broaden your options and start on the right track.

Note: below are the steps to completing a career protfolio. The resources needed in order to complete each step is located in the Resource Section.

STEP ONE: Choose a minimum of two career assessment tools located in the resource section (below). When you have completed the assessments you should complete a narrative. This narrative must answer the following questions:

What are some of your strengths as identified in the assessment tools?

How do these strengths turn into job related skills?

What are some career possibilities suitable for you, according to your inventory?

Write a brief description of the three jobs you have identified an interest in and explain what interests you about each one.

  Include the write up in your portfolio.

STEP TWO: Using the link for the Occupational Handbook in the resource section research the three jobs you have identified an interest in. In your research include:

 A brief job description,

training and other qualifications needed,

working conditions and

potential salaries.

Pretend you are wanting to pursue each job for a career, where can you go for training. Create a plan for each individual career.

  Write up all information and include it in your portfolio.

STEP THREE: Write a resume. Resumes can be your "foot in the door" in obtaining an interview. You need to sell yourself so the interviewer will be interested in meeting you. Your resume must show your skills, knowledge and experience.

Write a resume for the jobs you have selected using the link in the resource section or borrow one of the resume writing books available in the classroom.

Have someone proof- read your resume and make suggestions for change, include a final copy in your career portfolio.

STEP FOUR: Along with your Resume a cover letter is another introduction of you to a potential employer. A cover letter describes the job you are applying for, a brief listing of experiences or skills that make you a good candidate for the job and a way for the employer to get in touch with you. This your opportunity to persuade the employer to hire you. (this letter will count as a persuasive essay)

Write a cover letter. You can write one for a real job you are interested in or can make up a job to apply for. Use one of the web sites listed in resource for ideas and samples of cover letters.

Have someone proof- read your cover letter and make suggestions for change, include a final copy in your career portfolio.

 See rubric, under assessments, for writing advise and grading criteria.

STEP FIVE: After you have interviewed for a job a good way to remind the employer who you are is to send them a thank you letter. The thank you letter is to thank them for spending time for interviewing you.

Write a thank you letter. Pretend that you have interviewed at the place you sent your cover letter and resume to. For help use the web page in the resource section.

 Have someone proof- read your letter and make suggestions for change, include a final copy in your career portfolio.

STEP SIX: An important part of you career portfolio will be letters of recommendation that you obtain from three people you know. Two of the letters should be from people you work with or teachers. They must be able to talk about your skills, work habits and the other positive traits you have. The third letter can be from a friend, relative (not a parent) or neighbor. This letter should speak to your character.

Identify three people you can ask for a letter of recommendation.

Write them a letter requesting a letter of recommendation. Include some of the skills,work habits, positive traits and character skills you would like them to address. Make sure you tell them to include their full name, address and phone number.

After you have written the letters have them proofread by a person you trust. Make sure to keep a copy of each letter for your portfolio.

Contact the people you want to ask for a letter of recommendation. Ask them first than give them the letter. This will help them remember to write it for you. Give them a specific date you will pick up their letters.

When you get their letters, put them in your portfolio.

Use the web site page in the resource list for more information.

STEP SEVEN: Write a thank you letters to the people who wrote you letter of recommendations. Besides being a good way to acknowledge what they have done for you, it is also a good social skill. Keep copies of each letter in your portfolio.

STEP EIGHT: Using the variety of web sites in the resource list complete one job application. Not all places you might apply to have job applications but if they do it is important to be able to fill one out correctly. Go on-line and complete an application. Remember to print it out and include it in your portfolio.

 STEP NINE: Now that you are done with all your research, skills and writing, it is time to reflect. Write a personal reflection about what you have learned about your skills, strengths and career interests. Also discuss how your education and any training you have had (through work or other kinds of experiences) will help you with any of the careers you might be interested. Include information concerning future training needs and how you plan on obtaining them. Include anything that you have learned while doing this process. Include it in your portfolio.

 See rubric, in assessment section for writing advise and grading.

 

 RESOURCES (remember words written in blue and underlined will get you directly to the link)

CAREER ASSESSMENTS: Remember to use too different assessments.

The Career Key	The Kingdomality Personal Preference Profile http://www.cmi-lmi.com/enterppp.html
Motivational Assessment	CAREER ASSESSMENT
Analyze My Career	CAREER SERVICES
Job Hunters Bible http://www.jobhuntersbible.com/counseling/counseling.shtml

 JOB DESCRIPTION: use the occupational handbook (http://stats.bls.gov/ocohome.htm) as a resource

RESUME WRITING HELP:

JobStar- Resume (http://www.adm.uwaterloo.ca/infocecs/CRC/manual-home.html)

The Write Stuff (http://resume.monster.com/)

COVER LETTER HELP: 

Career Lab (http://www.careerlab.com/letters/chap07.htm)

Winning Cover Letters (http://campus.monster.com/articles/jobhunt/coverletters/)

THANK YOU LETTERS: 

Career Lab (http://www.careerlab.com/letters/chap13.htm)

 Winning Thank You Letters (http://campus.monster.com/articles/jobhunt/notes/)

REFERENCE LETTERS:

Ideas (http://psych.hanover.edu/handbook/rec_letters2.html)

 JOB APPLICATIONS:

 Mammoth Mountain (http://www.mammothmountain.com/00winter/index.html)

Essex Police Department (http://www.essex.org/polappform.htm)

Subway (www.subway.com)

Fletcher Allen (http://www.fahc.org/HR/empopp.htm)

Burlington Free Press (http://www.vermontcareerpath.com/)

Vermont Department of Employment (http://www.det.state.vt.us/)

University Of Vermont (http://www.uvm.edu/uvmcareers.html)

 

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LEARNING ADVICE

1. Complete one task at a time

2. Have someone proofread your writing before you mail anything out or make your final copy for your career portfolio.

3. Feel free to obtain a job application from somewhere else besides those listed on line.

4. Keep a clean copy of all your papers, keep them in a safe place. You might want to think about getting a small three ring binder to keep papers clean, safe and organized.

5. When you have completed each activity organize all your work into a portfolio. You may add additional items only if they relate to your work skills or highlight a special skill or achievement.

 Please note if you have found a career choice that you are interested in finding more about approach Joanne or Debbie to help you set up a job shadowing experience. 

 

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VERMONT STANDARDS

 This project will be focus on three Vermont standards. They are:

3.15 Career Choices

aaa. Collect information about specific careers, and experience these occupationally indirectly through classroom work.

3.16 Transition Planning

b. Demonstrate how their education and training has provided them with the knowledge and skills to enter their chosen occupation or pursue further education and/or training.

1.12 Personal Essay

In personal essays, students make connections between experiences and ideas.

a. reflect on a personal experience.

aa. Relate personal experiences to ideas.

b. Trace the process of reflection, making connections between thought and experience.

c. Establish a commonplace, concrete occasion as a context for the reflection.

d. Maintain a thoughtful voice and style.

Assessments

 You will be grades using the following rubrics:

PORTFOLIO

Portfolio	Far From It!	Getting It!	Got It!	Above and Beyond
Career Choices	no research completed on career choices/ideas	little information completed on career choices/ideas	all information collected on career choices/ideas and personalized	all in "Got It" plus participated in a job shadowing activity
Transition Planning	no connection made between education and career choice/ideas	no connection made between education and career choice/ideas	explain how your education has help provide you with the knowledge and skills needed to enter chosen occupation. and/or develop a plan in order to obtain the needed knowledge and skills	all in "Got It" plus obtained information from college or training program to obtain skills for career choices.
Activities	2 or more activities missing	1 or more activities missing	all activities included	an additional activity included (job shadow)
Presentation	poor grammar, unorganized	Poor grammar, unorganized, items missing	few grammar errors, organized	no grammar errors, organized, added creativity personalization
Resume	* name and addressed listed * jobs not listed * hard to read * grammar and spelling mistakes	* name and addressed listed * jobs listed but not in chronological order. * hard to read *grammar and spelling mistakes. * poor layout	*Position applied for listed. * One page *Readable style, margins even, spacing appropriate. * Employment listed in chronological order. *No grammar or spelling errors * name and address listed
Cover Letter See rubric below
Career Research	only one career researched	only 2 careers researched.	all three careers researched and all criteria (see process section) answered. Plan on how to obtain skills needed for each job included	creative format a well developed plan for next steps needed in training or skill development.
Thank you letters	poor format, not typed, spelling errors	poor format, not typed, spelling errors	proper format used. correct mailing address and salutations. no spelling or grammar errors	meeting standard plus own letter head used/created
Personal Reflection See Rubric below for assessment

 Assessment for Cover Letter ( persuasive letter)

A persuasive essay is a piece of writing that is designed to convince the reader that your opinion about something is the right one. In this case you are trying to persuade an employer to hire you and instead of writing an essay you are writing a letter. In order to do this, you have to:

a. Be clear about yourself, your strengths, training, and desires. In other words brag about yourself , your talents and why you would be the perfect employee.

b. Make sure you present a minimum of three arguments in your favor. Three tends to be a magic number, because if you can give three good reasons for something you usually can convince/ persuade your reader/audience to go along with you.

c. Make sure you use facts to back up each of your arguments /points. In this case facts will be your abilities, skills, talents and interest. You can also use quotes from letters of recommendations you have.

d. Remember just as in an essay you will want to make sure that you have a clear introduction, body and conclusion. Do not ramble and confuse your audience, make one point at a time.

Criteria	LIMITED	BASIC	MEETS	NEARLY	EXCEEDS
PURPOSE (CONTROLLING IDEA)	purpose of paper is unclear or not mentioned rambles, unfocused.	Focus still unclear. There is a purpose but still unclear. Waffles.	Presents a clear purpose. Still not smooth	Clear purpose. Focused. Good transitions
voice/Tone	Language is inexact. poor word choice. not convincing	general language. doesn't seem strongly convinced.	Uses appropriate but sometimes general language. Does not seem as if you are an expert	Uses language and vocab. effectively. Lets the reader solidly know what you are talking about.	May present ideas in an unusual or surprising pattern which is still effective
Organization	Confusing brief, poor organization	Has intro. body and conclusion. Simple points. Weak or missing transitions.	Has intro., body and conclusion but not clear. Arguments are list with no connections from one to another. Weak transitions.	Has a clear introduction, body and conclusion. Clearly organized and flow from one to the next with no gaps or redundancies. Clear transitions.	Presents a flair for persuasion, using interesting ideas presented in an original way.
Details	May contain irrelevant or incorrect information. Unclear ideas, no reflection	May contain irrelevant or incorrect information. Unclear ideas, no personalization.	ideas supported by some proof or examples	Clear details, supported by proof and or examples	.
Presentation		spelling errors, hand written, poor format	few minor spelling errors proper format used typed	Proper format used No spelling or grammar errors Typed Nice paper	Own letter head made/designed

 Assessment for  Personal Reflection/Essay

 A personal essay is almost an example of a narrative (story), but it varies slightly in that it describes a writer's response or thoughts to an event or stimulus. In this case case the stimulus is the web quest and the portfolio you have created.

It should included:

a. Your Purpose: explain in a clear way the event/process you have gone through. Include a good amount of reflection (looking back) of what it is that you have done.

b. Voice/Tone : the words you choose to use, the sentence structure and description you use is what makes up the voice and tone. By using using precise language (sensory details) that reflects the author's thoughts and feelings, metaphorical language (similes and metaphors) you can make your essay more interesting.

* a Simile is a direct comparison between 2 unlike things using the words" like" or "as". Example: Her eyes are like sparkling diamonds.

* a Metaphor is an indirect comparison between 2 unlike things. Example: Her eyes are sparkling diamonds.

c. Details are described in terms of using plenty of sensory imagery and/or using specific elaboration's strategies like comparison/contrast, reporting conversation of dialogue, and/or reviewing the history (personal history of reader or situational history of event).

d. Organization refers to the progression of ideas from one to the next in a natural, not awkward manner. also, if the stimulus can be reviewed or reflected upon from more than one angle, in a clear fashion, it is seen as adding to the organization.

The only thing that is consistent throughout the piece is the feeling the author conveys in his/her response to the event or stimulus. Keep in mind that you must describe the experience/stimulus and your personal response to it. Be sure to explore any new understanding or insights this event taught you about yourself or life, in general. It should end in a sort of "AH HA", an insight or understanding that you have gained from doing the event or stimulus.

Criteria	Limited	Basic	Intermediate	Accomplished	Exceeds
Purpose	The stimulus is not explained, no reflection	Just relates the incident or stimulus with very little reflection	Presents an occasion/stimulus, but that is what dominates the paper, very brief reflection	Presented stimulus or web of related events for reflection. Reflection and response is presented in a balanced way.
Voice/Tone	Simple, generic language. No sentence variety, ideas basic in presentation	Predictable and simple language, word choice. No real sense of author	Language was correct but fairly general. Some sense of author came through	Language was precise. Used a variety of sentence structures. Personality of author came through.	Uses of metaphors and or similes in language used effectively.
Organization	Confusing evaluation description of even presented. Major lapses in coherence.	Simple evaluation of stimulus presented. Some lapse in coherence.	Looked at the stimulus from one angle, but did so in depth. Ideas were coherent and clear but followed a predictable external pattern.	Looked at the stimulus in different ways. Ideas progressed naturally from one to the next in a flowing way.
Details	No attempt was made for elaboration of details. Points/details were repeated over and over.	Showed few elaborated details. Contained mostly just general descriptions of events/responses. Points listed like a grocery list.	Use some sensory imagery. Elaborated some details.	Used a lot of sensory imagery. Used specific elaboration strategies that include comparison/contrast, and/or naming/describing or reporting/conversations, and/or creating a scenario and/or reviewing the history.

 

CONCLUSION

The purpose of this web quest is to give you the opportunity to learn job seeking skills along with the opportunity to get some ideas for your career choices. Did you succeed? Answer the questions below and see what you scored.

1. Name 3 jobs you might be interested in pursuing in the future? ( 1 point for each job)

2. What are three important things to keep in mind when writing a Resume? (1 point for each)

3. Why are cover letters so important? (5 points)

4. Why should your cover letter be a persuasive letter? (4 points)

4. Pick one of your career matches and explain why it is a good match and what training do you need in order to obtain a job in that field? (10 points)