GCDA News & Reviews

(most recent news articles are first)

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Sep 20, 2009 -- GRADUATE CERTIFICATE PROGRAM IN CAREER DEVELOPMENT
Online Courses 2009-2010
Courses beginning January 11, 2010 are:
Measurement Approaches and Resources in Career Counseling

Program Promotion, Implementation, and Management
Offered to current enrollees or graduates from Master’s level degree programs in counseling, human resources, education, or a related field, these courses provide an opportunity for students to study and apply new knowledge of career development in theor own work place.
Application deadline is November 1^st. For additional information about this program, check out our website at http://www2.mercer.edu/CAPS/Graduate+Programs/Career+Development+Specialization.htm
Contact Betsy Johnson at (678) 547-6023 or johnson_em@mercer.edu to request an application and ask specific questions about this program.
Sep 20, 2009 -- GCDA Annual Kick-Off Event
Even the weather cooperated to make GCDA’s August 28^th annual Kick-Off event a success. By mid-afternoon the rainy-day skies had cleared to welcome participants to the Oglethorpe University museum venue, where they had a chance to learn more about personal branding/ social networking and then experience the latter in-person.
Walter Akana led the program with a lively presentation that provided context and practical tips for molding vision, purpose, values and passion into a uniquely personal brand. Noting the importance of addressing the three C’s of branding: clarity, consistency and constancy, Walter suggested exercises to help participants identify their particular niche markets—their “peeps”—and touched on the five “P’s” to consider when developing and implementing a personal media plan: Posting, Pontificating, Publicizing, Partnering, Profiling and Publishing.
Moving from the “what” of a personal media plan to the “how,” Otis Collier used his own successful practices and experience to guide participants through the most effective uses of three prominent online networking sites: LinkedIn, FaceBook and Twitter. In essence, LinkedIn is for business/professional use to promote your skills and services; FaceBook is where you let your hair down (but not too much!) and hang with your peeps; and Twitter can be summed up by: What are you doing? Twitter held no appeal to Otis until he used it one day to vent his frustration about a bad customer service experience with his wireless communication service provider. It turned out they were paying attention to what was being said about them online, and he was quickly contacted with the name of a manager to solve his problem!
Participants were particularly intrigued to learn from Otis the extent to which recruiters are utilizing all of these online resources to find and check out job candidates. He predicted that social networks could soon outstrip Monster.com in the job-search arena.
More than a few of us left the program with a renewed—and better informed—determination to improve our personal branding and online-presence efforts. But first we stayed to mingle with familiar and new faces at the GCDA membership reception following the presentations, where great food and drink offered a perfect way to start the weekend.
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Sep 17, 2009 -- MCDA Adds to Its Menu of Professional Development Opportunities!
These opportunities are open to all.
O*NET for Career Advisors is the latest in professional development programs designed for you. This is a self-paced, online program that will take you into the world of O*NET. You will use videos and other activities to see the benefits of using O*NET information. Earn 3.5 continuing education credits.
Hidden Gems is another self- paced, online program earning you 12 clock hours of credit. Here you will use several interactive web tools that will show you new ways of identifying interests and skills, finding information on occupations, improving job skills, finding education and training programs, finding and landing a job, and making a career transition. This program has been pre-approved by the Center for Credentialing and Education.
Visit the Professional Development Section at www.mdcareers.org to register for these professional development opportunities.
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Sep 20, 2009 -- Two career trainin g opportunities:
An NCDA Career Development Facilitator Instructor training ill take place in Albany NY, November
13 - 15, 2009. This is for experienced career professionals with adult teaching experience.
A Career Development Facilitator e-learning class beginning in October. This is for staff providing career services who need additional career development background. Contact information is almargenccc@earthlink.net or 845-876-0361.
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GCDA Professional Development Institute: Workshop Featuring Dr. John Krumblotz
May 30, 2009 -- The recent economic downturn and resulting effects on the job market have led many to believe they have too little influence on events and that future outcomes are unrelated to their own skills and competence. On May 15, Dr. John Krumboltz, renowned career theorist and Professor of Education and Psychology at Stanford University, showed how “luck” doesn’t just happen apart from our actions and talents.   This timely and invaluable workshop gave the nearly 50 of us who attended new insights and skills in helping ourselves and our clients make the most of the unexpected.
Workshop participants raved about how practical, clear, hopeful and entertaining Dr. Krumboltz’s presentation was. Many said they came away with specific counseling methods they could immediately apply in working with clients. The role plays and hands-on exercises provided opportunities for practitioners to try out techniques before taking them back to use in their counseling practices.
Dr. Krumboltz emphasized thinking of the career path as a lifelong learning experience and using past experiences to deal effectively with the present. Professionals who attended had this say about the workshop:
“This very practical workshop brought the theory I’d studied in graduate school to life and took something from the pages of a textbook to real life application. I can now help my clients see their personal power and the value in even small intentional steps they might have once left to “fate.” It was a day well spent in refreshing my skills and giving me new tools to help clients move forward.”
“Dr. Krumboltz’s story-telling approach made this workshop both fun and informative.”
Many of us purchased his book, Luck Is No Accident: Making the Most of Happenstance in Your Life and Career.   You will find it a fascinating read. In fact, come to one of our future workshops and you may win it as a door prize!
Reviewed by Charlotte Hayes, M.A., L.P.C.
Career Counselor
President-elect, Georgia Career Development Association
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GCDA Winter 2009 Program: Career Paths: The Entrepreneurial Option
If you missed the February 13, 2009 GCDA-sponsored workshop on Career Paths: The Entrepreneurial Option, you missed an outstanding presentation. Developed and presented by Bonnie Bailey, the presentation began with an overview of why some people consider and others do not consider being entrepreneurs. Next, Bonnie shed light on entrepreneurial myths—and there are many—before having participants break into groups to discuss the advantages and drawbacks of the four entrepreneurial options: consulting, starting a business, buying a business, and buying a franchise. The results were informative, interesting, collaborative, and sometimes entertaining.
Bonnie Bailey is president of In Other Words, Inc., a communications consulting firm, and can be reached by e-mail at bonnie@iowinc.biz.
Reviewed by Betsy Melvin, M.S.
At-large Board Member, Georgia Career Development Association Career Counselor