Career Readiness Champion Certificate Program
The SUNY Center for Professional Development and the SUNY Career Development Office Community of Practice have developed the framework for a Career Readiness Champion Certificate Program. The overarching goal of the program is to help faculty and staff on college campuses to learn the competencies (knowledge and skills) needed to create a campus culture focused on supporting students in planning for a career.
To receive an overall completion certificate, participants must complete a series of three courses which contain various learning activities delivered in an online, asynchronous format using the SUNY Center for Professional Development learning management system (LMS). See details of delivery and activities within each course description. Each course will require approximately 1 – 3 hours of “outside” course work.
Sponsored by the SUNY Center for Professional Development (CPD)
Target Audience
The audience for this program are all college and university faculty and staff who teach, advise, or work with students in any context in which their career plans are relevant including:
- Concierge and Success Coaches
- Academic Advisors
- Counselors/Mental Health Care Providers
- EOP Personnel
- Student Affairs Staff
- Faculty
- Athletic Coaching Staff
Learning Objectives
- Gain a Practical Understanding of the Career Development Process, Resources and Tools
- Effectively Communicate with Students about Career Choices and Planning
- Learn How to Integrate Career Readiness Into Your Role and the Advising Process, and How to Contribute to Creating a Career Culture on Your Campus
Program Completion Requirements
- To earn the Career Readiness Champion Certificate, participants must complete all three courses. It is recommended that courses be taken in order.
- Participants should be prepared to spend 2-4 hours per week on outside course work.
You may view this informational webinar recording for a brief overview of each course in the program.
Course Descriptions
Course 1: An Introduction to the Career Development Process
Course Description: This course is designed for faculty and staff involved in providing advising, coaching and career exploration activities both in and out of the classroom to learn the competencies (knowledge and skills) needed to create a campus culture focused on supporting students in planning for a career.
Participants in this 6 week online course will go through a series of discussions and activities designed to facilitate an understanding of national standards and practices surrounding career development and how they can be integrated into their everyday work to achieve better outcomes as they relate to career integration for their student populations.
Course Learning Outcomes
- Articulate the NACE (National Association of Colleges and Employers) career competencies
- Participants will give an example of how their work helps their students develop one of the NACE Career competencies and indicate how it is evidenced by student behaviors.
- Participants will give an example of how their work helps their students develop one of the NACE Career competencies and indicate how it is evidenced by student behaviors.
- Understand the basics of a few significant career exploration theories
- Learn about the 5 major career development theories
- Gain an understanding of the approaches that their campus’s career center takes when working with students
- Identify career exploration theories appropriate to your work role and student population
- Participants will identify two theories that could be applied to their work with students
- Identify career assessments appropriate in your work role and student population
- Understand practical application of career assessments
- Understand ethical guidelines and principles as they relate to career exploration and hiring practices and processes
- Review NACE Ethical guidelines
- Meet students where they are to identify their next steps in career planning
- Participants will gain an understanding of how to assist students they work with in identifying next steps in career planning
Course 2: Designing Your Career Development Toolkit
Course Description: This course is designed to assist student facing faculty and staff in developing a comprehensive understanding of career development available technologies, online resources, the role of campus career centers, and strategies to enable every student to pursue the job of their dreams.
In this 6-week course, participants will gain a holistic understanding of how the NACE competencies are relevant to your work role. We will explore each of the competencies to establish a connection to your campus role to implement best practices for career exploration, recruitment, and hiring.
We will navigate global career assessment tools and resources to support the research, understand of labor market data, and correlate career pathways to enable you and your students to make informed decisions while exploring their career options.
The course will also highlight the opportunities to partner with your campus career development center to discover resources and build effective relationships for referrals and further coaching. This course will also highlight ethical considerations encountered by diverse student populations and methods to confront and resolve barriers.
Course Learning Outcomes
- Connect the NACE career competencies to your work role and student population
- Utilize career assessments appropriate in your work role and student population
- Be able to apply ethical guidelines and principles as they relate to career exploration and hiring practices and processes
- Know where to locate and interpret labor market data and how this data relates to creating an informed and career focused student body
- Learn the responsibilities of your campus career development office and know when to refer students to that office
- Effectively work with diverse students to identify equity and inclusion obstacles
Course 3: Integrating Career Development into Your Role & Campus Culture
Course Description: This course is designed for faculty and staff who teach, advise, or work with students in any context where their career planning is relevant. Participants in this capstone course will devise a concrete plan to integrate career development into their campus roles in meaningful and transformative ways.
This course will provide opportunities to review national data, best practices, and explore innovative strategies to engage students, and the collective campus, to create a culture of career readiness through discussion and application. Participants will also be challenged to address diversity, access, and inclusion issues related to career development in higher education.
Course Learning Outcomes
- Apply the NACE career competencies to your work role and student population
- Examine where career competencies can be intentionally designed and enhanced to improve student career readiness
- Learn how to assess career readiness and share outcomes
- Apply career exploration theory appropriate to your work role and student population
- Articulate relevant career exploration strategies that will be used in their campus role
- Design plans to implement strategies to meet diverse student and institutional needs
- Articulate relevant career exploration strategies that will be used in their campus role
- Selectively utilize the appropriate career assessments appropriate in your work role and student population
- Illustrate how career assessments can enhance career readiness in their campus role
- Illustrate how career assessments can enhance career readiness in their campus role
- Incorporate ethical guidelines and principles as they relate to career exploration and hiring practices and processes into your work role.
- Apply NACE ethical guidelines and equity-minded practices
- Apply NACE ethical guidelines and equity-minded practices
- Know how to develop a transfer or graduate school pathway for students
- Understand barriers for students navigating pathways to achieve higher education
- Develop strategies to clearly identify pathways for students transferring to 4-year institutions or graduate programs
- Incorporate effective strategies to help diverse students strategize how to overcome obstacles to their career plan
- Understand how to design accessible and inclusive high impact practices in their respective roles
- Apply strategies to increase access and inclusion to increase career readiness for all students
- Understand how to design accessible and inclusive high impact practices in their respective roles
- Understand how to create and implement customized career development programs (majors, departments) when needed
- Design, implement, and assess customized career development programs specific to their role, students, and institution
Meet the Instructors
Dawn Jones
Dawn Jones is the Assistant Director of Career Services at SUNY Schenectady County Community College where she started in 2008. She previously worked as an employment specialist in the human services field. Collectively, Dawn has nearly 20 years of experience in providing individual and group career advisement ranging from job development to career readiness workshops as well as individualized guidance in overcoming barriers and moving toward career and educational goals.
Dawn specializes in Career Transition Assistance and is a Certified MBTI Master Practitioner and skilled in administering a variety of career and personal assessments. In addition, Dawn is responsible for the coordination of career related initiatives that serve special populations including serving as the Federal Workforce Recruitment program coordinator for her campus.
Dawn is a 3 time SUNY alumna, completing her A.S. in Human Services at SUNY Schenectady, continuing on for her B.S. in both Sociology and Psychology from SUNY Potsdam, and her M.A. in Adult Learning with a focus on Career Development from SUNY Empire.
Jose Miguel Longo
He is certified both as a Life Purpose Coach and Gallup Strengths Coach and is an active member of the Career Counselors’ Consortium Northeast, the SUNY Career Development Organization (CDO), the CNY Recruiting Consortium, and the Society for Human Resource Management. He enthusiastically served as an adjunct lecturer of SUNY Poly’s First Year Seminar (FYS). He developed a “4 Career Success Roadmap” that outlined a plan for students to gain career competencies at every educational level. He has proudly advised student organizations such as Poly Pride, BLASU, and served as a founding member of You Belong, SUNY Poly’s faculty, staff, and student advocacy committee for inclusivity.
José Miguel is a passionate podcaster and author of numerous articles to facilitate an individualized metamorphosis from worker to invigorated professional with holistic work-life balance skills. His values include tenets of inclusivity, the incorporation of diversity into every facet of workplace community culture, and motivating individuals to consider calculated, informed career decisions in pursuit of their dreams.
He earned his Master of Arts in Higher Education Administration (Stony Brook University); his Bachelor of Arts in Spanish (SUNY Oneonta); and his Associate of Occupational Science in Business Administration (Utica School of Commerce).
Jessie Stack Lombardo
Jessie Stack Lombardo, Director of the Career Design Center at SUNY Geneseo, has 20 years of experience in career development within SUNY institutions. In addition to her experience as a career coach, Jessie has developed and taught career courses and instructional modules for a wide range of students, faculty and staff. In her current role, she leads the campus in designing high-impact, equitable, and inclusive career education strategies.
Jessie is a past president of the Western New York Association of College Career Centers, president-elect of the SUNY Career Development Organization, and a member of the 2021 Mastermind Community for top level career services leaders across the country.
Jessie completed her MS in Higher Education and Student Affairs Administration from Buffalo State College and a BA in Psychology from the University at Buffalo.
Course Pricing
Group Discounts Available
Additional discounts are available to groups of the following size attending the same program:
- 5-9 people = 10% discount
- 10-19 people = 15% discount
- 20-29 people = 20% discount
Please send your request to cpdinfo@suny.edu at least 30 days prior to the start of the course/program.
How to Pay
Available payment methods are:
- Credit Card (Mastercard or Visa)
- CPD General Points
- Campus Check
- Journal Transfer
FULL payment is required 30 days from the date of registration.
CPD Points: Check if your campus is a member. Prior approval is required. If points are denied, the registrant is responsible for the payment.
Journal Transfer (State Operated campuses only): An account number with authorizing signature for Journal Transfers is required within 48 hours. You must print and return the invoice that is included with the registration confirmation email.
Registration
2025 Course Dates
Spring
- Course 1: An Introduction to the Career Development Process Jan. 7 – Feb. 17
- Course 2: Developing Your Career Development Toolkit Feb. 18 – March 31
- Course 3: Integrating Career Development into Your Role & Campus Culture April 1 – May 12
Summer
- Course 1: An Introduction to the Career Development Process May 13 – June 23
- Course 2: Developing Your Career Development Toolkit June 24 – Aug. 4
- Course 3: Integrating Career Development into Your Role & Campus Culture Aug. 5 – Sept. 15
Contact Us
The SUNY Center for Professional Development (CPD) supports a wide range of professional development opportunities for the academic, technical, and leadership communities across the SUNY System.