Online career services should provide resources to help students develop career plans as well as locate potential employment opportunities, both during their educational careers and afterwards. A number of national resources are available to supplement those developed by an individual college or university.
Good Practice Recommendations
Describe services and make clear who is eligible for them. Specify which services and resources are
available to current students, alumni, community members, and employers. (San Diego State University)
Provide self-help career tools, including on-line tutorials. Link to online career self-assessment instruments, a large number of which are available. Developed by individual institutions’ counseling offices as well as private vendors, they offer students help in defining their interests, values, and skills, and in identifying possible career choices. (University of Montana)
Summarize
opportunities for in-school career exploration. Describe
and list internships, service learning, co-operative education, part-time jobs, and
volunteer opportunities. (University
of Alaska, Anchorage)
Offer assistance in education-to-career planning. Make explicit the relationship between choosing a major and identifying potential careers. (Brigham Young University)
Display local and national job listings. Establish a system for capturing and displaying a wide variety of job possibilities. (University of Hawaii)
Features to Consider
Provide an online, comprehensive, job search handbook. (Eastern Oregon University)
Develop
a moderated on-line forum and/or automatic direct email specifically for students who
register for the service. Provide a
way to exchange news and information on career-related opportunities, including career
services events, internships, and employment opportunities. Link to other job listing
services for which students can register. (University of California,
Riverside)
Establish
relationships with alumni and promote networking opportunities via the Web. (Colorado State University)
Link
to the College Outcomes Project. This
site allows students to document, throughout their college careers, their growing skills
in specific areas identified as important by employers.
(University of Oregon)