Career Development Courses
Please note the course numbers have changed as follows, effective fall 2012:
LCC 340 has been changed to LOS/SBS/HUM/SCI 369
LCC 400 has been changed to LOS/SBS/HUM/SCI 413
LCC 450 has been changed to LOS/SBS/HUM/SCI 447
369, 413 and 447 are now program requirements. Both 369 and 413are 1.5 credits (changed from 1 credit). These changes weremade to reflect the amount of work to complete the courses, and to enable you to take a three credit hour sequence by taking 369 as a seven week course in the first half of a given semester and 413 in the second half. These seven-week courses are very fast and intense. You must make a commitment to keeping up with the work and staying very focused!There is a lot of work, with one or two weekly assignments for each course. We also have a 15 week option for both courses. A typical schedule will look like this:
369as a fully online 15 week course (Lynsey Wood)
413 as a fully online 15 week course (Mary Lafontaine)
369/413 as face-to-face seven-week courses (Janet Etzel)
369 as a fully online four week course during winter session (Sharon Timberlake- based on demand)
447 as a fully online 15 week-30 week course (Leigh Mundhenk)
Course content:
369 is a career decision-making course. You may come into the course with assumptions about your career plans. We ask you to suspend these assumptions, so that you can explore possible careers as yet unknown to you. During this course you engage in an intense self-assessment of your values, skills, interests, and learning styles, and develop a profile on and learn how to use LinkedIn. You then learn to research potential careers, both known and unknown to you, using the Department of Labor website, O*Net. You conduct four informational interviews, two each on your top two career choices, and then, using the information from your research and informational interviews, use a structured career decision-making process to narrow your choice to one. This is an important outcome, as you need to be as clear as possible about yourcareer direction before taking 413 and doing your internship.Ifyou have chosen a career that requires graduate school,you will be guided toward materials to assist you in the application process, particularly in writing your personal statement.If you come into this course with a career decision in mind, you may return to that decision, but now as an informed and thoroughly researched option. You also may choose a career previously unknown to you.You must take 369 before you take 413; you will need the information learned in 369 for 413. While it is possible for them to take both courses during the same semester, by taking the abbreviated courses, you should not take 369 and 413 simultaneously, nor should you take 413 prior to taking 369. We highly recommend that you take this course even if you have chosen a career, as it will help you confirm your choice through a systematic process, and help you build a valuable network. However, if you have confirmed yourcareer choiceor are working at a professional level in that career, and have a good professional network in place, it may be appropriate to waive 369. Please consult with your faculty advisor if this is the case.
413, which has been renamed "Job Search Skills the 21st Century", is a job search skills course covering all aspects of the job search, using the most contemporary practices. We include networking, resume writing, cover letter writing,using social media (such as LinkedIn), interviewing, and salary negotiation. We believe all students should take this course; rarely does the student have the knowledge needed in this competitive job market to conduct an effective job search.You will complete this course with the skills you need to market yourself effectively, both for your internship as well as for a future job. You may feel you do not need this course, but we would highly recommend that you refrain from waiving it, even if you are in a professional role you enjoy and plan to stay in. The job market is very volatile and unexpected layoffs are still common. You may be working with outdated assumptions about how to conduct a job search that will not serve you very well today. For example, most students have resumes that use outmoded formatting and language. Please do not be too quick to waive this course.Although 413 is a prerequisite for 447 (Internship), you may take them together, as long asyoumeet certain criteria. If this is the case, please contact Leigh Mundhenkto discuss this.
447 is the internship. Over 60% of students in the United States are doing internships now. Internships at LAC can help you confirm your career choice and build a skill set that will enable you to enter your field of choice. Having chosen a career in 369, you will begin by identifying an overall goal and creating a set of learning outcomes that you need to accomplish in order to market yourself successfully for an entry level (or higher, if you are already entry level) candidate. Following the approval of yourLearning Contract, you will seek an internship using the job search skills you acquired in 413. You are responsible for acquiring your own internship, so as to give you experience similar to looking for a job.Wewill provide contacts as needed. During your internship,you will complete assignments that ask you to observe and analyze such things as organizational culture, communication styles, ethical practices, efforts toward sustainability, and effective workplace practices. Additionally you are asked to demonstrate that you have accomplished your learning outcomes, evaluate the pros and cons of entering your field of choice, research and describe professional resources available to you, and reflect on what youhave learned about yourself and how you have grown. Students whomake a strong commitment to their internship by writing thoughtful learning contract, giving careful consideration to an appropriate site, and intentionally reflecting on the experience, gain the most benefit, perhaps seeing, as many others do, that the internship has been one of the most transformational experiences they have had as a college student. You may take up to six credit hours, but permission to take more than three must come from your faculty advisor. Please do not register for internship if you have more than one incomplete. The internship requires 8-15 hours per week; with more than one incomplete you may find it very difficult to manage your time while doing your internship and taking other courses, without having the extra burden of finishing incompletes.
In all three of these courses, there are many opportunities for you to reflect– on who you are as a person, on your college experience and how it has informed your internship, on how you want to contribute to society through your work, and on how the experience has affected you and helped you grow. Before requesting a waiver for any of these courses, please consider what you might miss by not having these experiences and learning opportunities!
Leigh G. Mundhenk, PhD
Director of Field Experiences
753-6581