“Career Exploration Challenge” Engaging GenZ Students with Career Exploration

Patricia J ean, Senior Career Advisor, Office of Partnerships & Community Engagement

Soulyka Agana-Woodbine, Career Stra tegis t, Office of Student Engagement

Uriah Brown,Student Succes s Advocate, Office of Student Engagement

Tananya Barr, Second Year Guttman Community College Student

Overview

● GenZ - What’s the difference?● Program goals● Program structure● Assessment Results● Next Steps - What did we learn?

What’s the difference?

Millennials

● Typically range from ages 20-35 or 22-37

● Tech s avvy● Communicate with text● Optimis ts● Collaborative thinking● 9/ 11 Tragedy

GenZ

● Typically range from ages 0-19● Social media s avvy● Communicate with images● Realis ts● Known internet s ince birth● Des ire more independent work● Short a ttention span

Why Career Exploration Challenge?

● Overview of Student Succes s Advocate Role: Firs t Year Students○ LaBSS 1 : What’s my major?○ LaBSS 2: Res ume, LinkedIn, Elevator Pitch

● Overview of Career Stra tegis t Role: Continuing Students○ Trans fer application proces s○ Trans fer Fair ○ Alumni Trans fer Panel ○ Bridge to Major

● Overview of Office of Partnerships and Community Engagement○ Career panels , career coaching s es s ions , events with external partners .

Program GoalsThe Office of Partners hips and Community Engagement (OPCE) along with the Advis ing department created an innovative way to guide GenZ s tudents through career and major exploration. Through lunch with profes s ionals , s ite tours and works hops , s tudent’s will be expos ed to different and exciting career choices . The Career Exploration Challenge offers a guided experience for s tudents to explore their options .

Learning Outcomes

1. Learn an innovative way to as s is t GenZ s tudents with declaring a major within their firs t two years and if applicable, identify s enior college majors of interes t.

2. Share us eful tools and res ources to help s tudent explore career and majors of interes t.3. Demons trate how to trans late an impactful practice into a fun, interactive game.

● Gaming experience - events a ttached to points .● Showcas ing winner weekly - monitors● Informed all participants - s coreboard of points ● Informed advis ing community - who’s in the lead?● Offered choices - independence● Short a ttention span - provided updates in a timely manner

Tailoring Our Program for

Application Process

1. Promote/Advertise Program● Advis ors inform s tudents about new program.● Information Ses s ion: opportunity for s tudents to learn more about CEC, ans wer

ques tions from s tudents .

1. Students Completed Application● Provided information about interes ts and expectations

1. Acceptance Notification● Contact s tudents who were s elected for the program.● Email a copy of the CEC Calendar to all participants .

Program Structure

1. Mandatory Introduction Works hop/ Pres entation from the Bureau of Labor Statis tics (BLS)

2. Lunch with a profes s ional #13. Site Tour - WeWork #14. Lunch with a profes s ional #25. Site Tour - City College New York Zahn Center #26. Clos ing Mandatory Works hop/ Pres entation from COOP

Winner of CEC

• Lunch with the Deans

• Swag bag

• Campus Recognition – TV screens , socia l media , certificate

• Informational Interview set up by OPCE – indus try of YOUR CHOICE!

Assessment

Direct Quotes - Qualita tive

● “I learned that I can use the BLS.gov.ooh to find careers in my major.”● “I learned about a few other new careers in the education and social s ciences

field that I am interes ted in for my future. I got an idea about future careers I might want to pursue. I dis covered a few new resources to conduct career research.”

● “For the next CEC, we should vis it more companies like Google, Huffington Pos t, Microsoft and other famous companies .”

● “I learned how to network and hold on to rela tionships . Don’t burn bridges with people.”

Next Steps - What did we learn?

● Collaborate with Center for College Effectivenes s (CCE) to create s urvey before program begins .

● Spreading out program - s emes ter long (12 wks ) vs . s ummer/ winter s es s ion (6 wks )

● Logis tics for s ite tours● Coaching from Office of Acces s ABILITY to addres s

s tudents with dis abilities

CEC Winner - Tananya Barr1. Why did you apply to Career Exploration Challenge?

When I firs t came to Guttman I wanted to be a veterinarian but I la ter changed my mind. I applied to CEC becaus e I was uns ure about what I wanted to do after Guttman. I knew that this program would expos e me to other career options .

1. Which event did you find most helpful and why?

I found the Bureau of Labor Statis tics and Lunch with Profes s ionals events the mos t helpful. I enjoyed hearing the s peakers ta lk about their pers onal college and career journey s tories .

1. What is one thing that you’re working on now from the CEC?

I learned about the importance of networking and am s till working on this s kill now. Putting yours elf out there to meet new people improves your confidence and public s peaking.

Q&A