Career Development Skills & Strategies Course-Syllabus, Spring 2022

Instructor: Farhan Ali-Zada – Career Advisor of School of Business

Office hours:
Term: Spring 2022
Level: 5th Semester Undergraduate Program
Course type: 6-credit Academic internship in Fall 2021/Spring 2022

Introduction and Basic Concepts

ADA University prepares its students for a rewarding and accomplished future. This preparation includes
exposing students to ADA’s ample and effective resources for knowledge, quality education as well as
leadership and career development. In line with this mission current course offers students career
development and management modules to help in charting a course for students’ careers. It is directed
to assist and boost the knowledge in career choice and planning through self-discovery and market
analysis as well as practical experience through a credit-bearing internship.

Learning Outcomes

The current course offers focus on self-assessment, employer research and market analysis, employer
and industry-specific branding, professional networking ,and role of social media in job search, resume
and cover letter writing, interviewing abilities, job offer negotiations, and work ethics.

By the end of the course students should be able (to):

- assess personal interests, abilities/skills, and preferences to find the better fit with specific
careers and occupations (personality exposure & discovery);
- conduct in-depth market research on specific industries and employers as well as have
knowledge on changing career trends and opportunities;
- conduct informational interviews and further market analysis to identify and narrow down
personal career plan;
- use personal assessment and employer research to conduct a SWOT analysis and develop a
personalized action plan for skills, knowledge, and experience development;
- decide on a target market, focus on potential employers’ needs and develop a relevant brand
message communicating individual value and tailor individual professional development plan
reflecting career roadmap with an included timeline of actions;
- tailor professional marketing tools to the individual needs and career plans (including target
resume, motivation/cover letters, personal branding plan);
- understand the importance and purpose of a professional network; establish and start
developing a core network in their field of interest;
- have an understanding of interview structure, expectations, and questions on behavioral skills
using the context, challenge, action, and result (CCAR) format to provide significant examples of
past behavior;
- develop skills of the job offer (salary) negotiations and ethics;
- manage the transition from School to the Work environment with an understanding of
corporate culture and work ethics.
Course Requirements

CDSS is a prerequisite to the credit-bearing internship granting in total 6 ECTS all together upon
successful completion of a course in the Fall semester and an internship either in Spring or in summer
semester. The student will be granted with “PASS” grade upon the successful accomplishment of both
course and academic internship. Students failing the CDSS will not be entitled to undertake an academic
internship.

This compulsory course is designed to focus on skill acquisition and personal development so active
involvement in all aspects of the course is required. Additional assignments may be given for failure to
complete the required assignment. Personalized feedback will be provided at an individual counseling
session with the course instructor - Career Advisor.

For further information on other procedures (such as RSVP and counseling appointment scheduling),
please, check with your School Career Advisor.

Grading policy

The course weight is 6 credits: 50% for 1 semester-long CDSS course and 50% for a credit-
bearing Internship. Students will have “Incomplete” grades and the credits will be counted in
attempted, but not in earned by the end of the Fall semester. Once students successfully
complete their internship component the credits will be counted as earned.

Minimum 75% of the total possible grade is counted as PASS for the learning part of the course.
Any number of points below 75% will be considered as a failure of the learning part of the
course which prevents the opportunity to undertake the academic internship and earn 6
credits.
Due to the assignment submission policy, all assignments are to be turned in by the set
deadline. Late submission will result in a 50% grade reduction. Assignments submitted 2 days
after the deadline will be graded as “0”.

Attendance and Participation Policy

Just as in professional life, students are expected to be actively involved in the course work and treat
class and group sessions like work meetings. You should be prepared and be actively involved in the
meetings. Session attendance and participation in class discussions are required as it carries a weight of
15% of a total grade. Any arrival later than 10 minutes of the start of the class will be considered as
absent.

Important: only 2 excused absences, on the 3 rd absence, percentage deduction starts, after 6 th absence
course FAIL.

Please refer to the table given below for the division of grade percentages for the course and the
subsequent breakdown of assignments to be submitted.

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 Activity Submission/Record Percentage

Class Attendance & Participation 15%

 Self-assessment 30%
Individual Career Planning meeting reviews (strengths,
(Career counseling session) interests and values);
 Resume critique
 Cover letter critique
 CAREERlink profile;
 Career road mapping
Mock Interview  Mock Interview (face- 25%
to-face practice
interview with Career
Advisor
Market Research Presentation  Employer & Industry 15%
Research
 Group Presentation
Professional Portfolio review  Branding and 15%
Networking pitch;
 Professional
Development Plan &
Internship goals

Team Projects and Academic Honesty

This course is designed to equip you with professional career-building and management skills.
Therefore, if you want to benefit from the course and get the best experience, you should be actively
engaged in group meetings, group tasks and projects as well as individual engagement with your Career
Advisor. It is important that every student takes a lead and carries the responsibility of being a team
member and doing his/her best for the individual and group benefit at the same time.

As you know each member of ADA the community has to conform to the rules of the ADA Honor Code.
Under no circumstances, you are allowed to copy any outside resources or use the work of any author
without proper citation rules. This is about your professionalism and honesty not to use the work and
ideas of others and be the sole responsible person for any of your homework and assignments.

Course Content & Weekly structure

Below is a week-by-week review of the course. All required readings should be completed before the
session. Deadlines for assignments will be announced every week in class but also set upfront on the
course management system - Blackboard.

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Week 1 (Jan 24th – 28th): Introduction to CDSS

Course Introduction

- Instructor’s & Students’ brief self-introduction

- Introduction to Career Services
- Introduction to course syllabus and requirements
- CareerLink platform, introduction, and guidance

Assignments:
 Set & Complete CareerLink account

Week 2 (Jan 31st – Feb 4th): Self-Assessment

- Personality and preferences

- Areas of interest, personal values, and rewards
- Values, interests, personality, and skills – VIPS

Handouts:
In-class career aptitude test

Optional reading
▪ The Pathfinder, (Lore, 2011), p. 219-230.
▪ Matching your interests, skills, and values to occupations (Liptak, 2008), p. 70-78 and p. 85-90

Week 3 (Feb 7th– 11th): Your Marketing tools

Resume Writing and Cover Letter/Thank you Letters

- Why do we need a resume?
- Target Resume Do’s and Don’ts
- Structured Resume Sample and Cover Letter Guidance
- Why should you send a Thank You email after the Interview? Motivation letter and purpose of
the statement

Assignments:
 Prepare your resume to submit to CareerLink and if needed book an appointment with Career
Advisor
 Think of your dream job and design your Cover Letter and submit to CareerLink

Week 4 (Feb 14th- 18th): Individual Career Planning meetings (15 min. each student)

• Self-assessment reviews (strengths, interests, and values);

• Resume and Cover letter critique;
• CareerLink profile;
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• Career planning (road mapping)
• LinkedIn Profile

Week 5 (Feb 21st – 25th): Market analysis and Employer Choice

- Occupational Studies
- Understanding different sectors, industries and types of employers
- Conducting in-depth research on career trends within specific industries

Assignments:

• Prepare your informational interview report and research on a potential employer

Handouts

• Career trends, majors and careers

http://www.monster.com/career-advice/article/informational-interviewing
http://www.careersinpublichealth.net/resources/10-awesome-informational-interview-questions

Video

• Informational Interviews, Oxford Career Service

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jn7Bk4_yEEw

• Watch this playlist of popular informational interviews

https://www.youtube.com/watch?
v=xnMlQv3ZWLw&list=PLNbfcglGhU11Rfc68dojJRyukfL2VZVYF&index=2

• How to run the informational Interviews

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wZor7bWEIXc (this video is about networking)

Optional reading

• Informational Interview benefits and steps

https://career.berkeley.edu/Info/InfoInterview

Week 6 (Feb 28th – Mar 4th): Job Search Strategies and Techniques

- Job role and internship analysis (required skills and employer expectations)
- Analyzing job sources and job boards
- Aligning self-assessment with careers: Your major and job choice
- Understanding how values relate to professional choices and career path

Assignments:

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Worksheets & Writing

• Industry and Employer Research Worksheet (page 1 and 2) - complete worksheet on employer
research and fit (SWOT analysis), develop your Professional Development Plan
Handout

• Majors and Careers handout

• Job search resources & techniques

Optional reading

• Make the Most of Your Style: Temperament and Job Search, (Liptak, 2008), p. 179-191.
• Sources of Job, (Yena, 2011), p. 151-161

Week 7 (Mar 7th – 11th): Research the Market Realities (No class)

Groups research and make informational interviews with employers

Week 8 (Mar 14th- 18th): Market research presentations

Employer Research presentations by groups in the class

Week 9 (Mar 21st - 25th): Novruz Holiday

Week 10 (Mar 28th – Apr 1st): Interviewing skills

- Understanding “Why do I even get Interviewed?”

- Types of Interviews and questions
- How do internship interviews differ from job interviews?
- In group, mock Interview in the classroom with peers

In-Class Assignment:
• HR – Candidate Role Play: Are you satisfied with the answers? Would you Hire this Person?

Handout:
• Sample of Situational and Behavioral Questions
• http://www.olin.edu/sites/default/files/01_skillsandtech.pdf
• https://hbr.org/1964/01/strategies-of-effective-interviewing

Video:
• https://www.extension.harvard.edu/inside-extension/how-ace-interview

Week 11 (Apr 4th – 8th): Individual Mock interviews (face-to-face/15-20 min)

 Students’ individual mock interviews with the Career Advisor

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Week 12 (Apr 11th – 15th): Networking (Digital networking and Art of LinkedIn) and Personal
Branding

- Understanding the value of a professional network

- Effective LinkedIn usage
- How does Facebook affects our Career? Do’s and Don’ts
- Open Discussion: “What is personal branding?”
- Why do you need to build your very own brand?
- What is your WOW factor?
- Watch Ted Talk from Rutgers University regarding “Networking is just like your Facebook”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Po-QOVodPhU

Assignment:
• Personal branding pitch

Handout:
• LinkedIn Profile Check List

Optional Readings:

• 19 Terrible LinkedIn Mistakes that you are making:

https://capd.mit.edu/jobs-and-internships/resumes-cvs-cover-letters-and-linkedin/linkedin

• Facebook Can Tell You If A Person Is Worth Hiring:

http://www.forbes.com/sites/kashmirhill/2012/03/05/facebook-can-tell-you-if-a-person-is-worth-
hiring/#31e8f5bf6236

• 3 things that employers want to see in your social media along with statistics from real employers:
http://careers.workopolis.com/advice/the-three-things-that-employers-want-to-find-out-about-you-
online/
Importance of Networking:
http://www.strategicbusinessnetwork.com/about/importance

Week 13 (Apr 18th- 22nd): Networking in Practice

 Industry representatives holding the sessions about career development and their success
stories on campus

Week 14 (Apr 25th – 29th): Work Ethics & Employer relations

- How to accept a job/internship offer?

- How to discuss salary offer?
- How different is World of Work? What should you know before starting your career?
- Corporate Ethics

Optional Readings:
- https://www.researchgate.net/publication/287374136_The_Employment_Relationship

Week 15 (May 2nd – 6th): Professional Portfolio reviews (10 min each student)
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- Branding and Networking pitch;
- Professional Development Plan & Internship goals