Career Placement Test

Posts Tagged ‘College’

I am wondering if this all seems possible. I have researched and mapped out my education and career choices, and know that some things may change or not happen at all, but I think this is all entirely possible for me. My family disagree. Please feel free to post your opinion, criticism, or advice below.

High School – have at least a 3.0 GPA, and a decent class rank (top 50% perhaps?) , take the SAT, French SAT II, ACT, and ASVAB, talk to recruiters (long, involved process, I understand), and graduate under the distinguished plan with some college credit already earned through the AP courses and tests I have taken. Also earn community service credit, and do some volunteering work, with perhaps a summer program studying at a college. (Some interesting courses I’ve taken or will be taking: Aviation (mechanics and flying), Biotechnology, Theatre, 4 years of band, AP Statistics, 3 years of French, 1 year of Latin, Music Theory)

College – earn at least an Associate’s degree, possibly a Bachelor’s in Communications or International Relations

USAF – 6-year commitment as a linguist. I must make a good enough score on the Defense Language Aptitude Battery to qualify for Category Four languages, which is a requirement if I wish to join the Air Force. I can also finish my college education while serving.

CIA – requires a degree of some sort (I’ve forgotten), a spotless record, and excellent foreign experience and language proficiency, of which I will gain in my time in the military, much thanks to the two-year tech school in Monterrey (Defense Language Institute). I want to serve in the clandestine service of the CIA, as a Language Officer.

See, it’s all possible, right? As long as I’m determined and I work very, very hard. My dad is the only person who takes me seriously in this endeavor. Everyone else believes this is just a phase.

Please let me know if I’ve overlooked anything. I’ve done a lot of research, but I could have missed something. Provide links and references too please! Thanks everyone.
I thought about being an officer, but I don’t personally think that would be the best decision for me. Aren’t there special requirements for officers? Like OCS and such. I don’t know if I’d be up for that responsibility. Also, I’d really like to do the military before the CIA. It’ll give me a better chance, and I’ll be much more proficient in speaking a tongue if I study at DCI instead of a regular university.

When you enroll in college, chances are that you have college and career choices already in mind.  In some cases, students change their goals after they are in college for a short period of time.  They may do this because of the trend when it comes to college jobs or just because they prefer a new area of study.  This is not unusual.  However, by the time you are ready to graduate from school, or even when you are in your third year of college, you should have your college and career choices down pat. 

Once you have decided on a field of study and what you want to do with your life, you should start to look for college jobs that will help you gain knowledge and experience based upon what you are learning in school.  You make your college and career choices for a reason. Usually, this is based upon some aptitude that you have for a certain field of study as well as an interest.  In some cases, it can be based upon an influx of college jobs that are available for those in certain fields.  Whatever your reasons, you should start to look for college jobs that are related to your field of study after you have decided what you want to do with your life with regard to your career choice. 

The entire purpose of going to college is to not only learn, but also to make a choice as to what you wish to do when you get out of college and are on your own.  You should make your college and career choices based upon your ideal job and what you will enjoy doing when you have to support yourself in the adult world.  Once you have made this choice, you should start to seek out job opportunities that will further advance your goals. 

Not all of the college jobs that are available are paying jobs.  Many college students enter into mentoring programs that will help them find internships.  These are non paying jobs that give a student a taste of what to expect in the career field of their choice.  This is a good opportunity to gain experience in that field of study and you can use this experience when you are seeking college jobs after you graduate from school.  Many employers are impressed with those who have completed successful internships in their field of study. 

If you are wondering about college and career choices, or if you are looking for college jobs, you can register at a site online for college graduates as well as students.  Instead of looking for college jobs through sites that are created for everyone else, you can narrow down your search and look for jobs that relate to your field of study by registering for such an online site.  You can also acquire mentoring as well as other information about college and career choices when you register for sites for college students and recent graduates of colleges and universities who are looking for jobs. 

How to get your Child to Graduate High School Early and Into College for Free

You’re probably wondering, what? How?  I will show you a few strategies that can help you obtain just that.  I will start off with, how they can graduate high school early.

1.    For students to take a placement test, and skipping 2-3 grades.  
2.    My favorite way is through home schooling.  

Plan number 1: skip grades.

Students taking a placement test and passing it to the next class is not as hard as many parents think.  The problem is that we don’t give our kids the benefit of doubt. All of our kids are geniuses, all we need to do is help them see it, and so they are motivated to excel on their own.  Without mommy and daddy always looking behind their shoulders.  How I suggest this gets done, is for all the busy people who have to work, they need to for the first 2 -3 years of their child’s education, is sit with them every evening and go over homework and also have the child explain it to the parents.  I know you’re probably thinking I don’t have any time for that, with dinner to serve, baths, etc.  I am telling you that if you want your child to excel and not worry about nagging them later, then you need to sacrifice some time and be there for them when it counts.  Like myself cook the whole weeks meal on Sunday’s and just heat and serve during the week.  Take the phone off of the hook and just focus on your child for 1-2 hours.  If you have more than one child, have all of them studying at the same time and spend a few minutes with each one.  Basically make rounds during that time, so they each get your full attention.  Again this will take some training and some pushing on your part, but remember the benefits are for you.  If you can get all of your children to get scholarships to College would that alone not be worth it?  If you have two to three children, that is saving a whole lot of money from your pocket.  If they get in a great school, each can save about $30,000- $50,000 from paying the University.  Is that not worth it for your time?  What’s sad is that most parents don’t even have that money to help their kids out with College, so everyone gets in debt for school.  I am just showing you that if you help them focus on themselves you will save time and money later.  It can’t be any easier than that.  Let’s just say that you really can’t due it, because of how your life is scheduled right now, what about hiring a tutor for just a few dollars an hour, a young teenager to help your child with what you want.  Believe me it will give your child confidence and skills that they didn’t know they had.  

Plan number 2: home schooling your children.

You know when they are home schooled, they are above average.  Those are the kids who Yale, Stanford and Harvard seek to recruit first.  For they are disciplined to learn and teach themselves.  You’re probably thinking, “I am too busy, I can’t home school.” That’s what I was saying; I used to be a corporate mom and enjoyed it too.  After I realized that no one cared as much about my kid’s education as me, I changed my lifestyle to make it happen.  However, I can hear some of you saying right now, “but I can’t do it, because of my responsibilities.”  I understand, and will not push you do it my way, but for all of those moms who are at home, they can home school.  Imagine spending about 3 hours a day with your child to learn and the rest of the time, they teach themselves.  They have to read books, do projects, explore.  Imagine if you had a curriculum that helped them graduate High School by the age of 14.  Which College would not want them?  If they are that smart, you will have schools fighting for them.  At that age I personally recommend a University close to home, so the parents can drop and pick them up.  

There are many systems set up to that does just that.  For more information email me  
at zohra@zohrasarwari.com

Imagine raising 2, 3, 4 great kids.  Who are smart, talented, well-educated and loved.  What can those kids do for us? Anything.  The problem with society nowadays is we all want to do everything and be great at it.  We simply can’t do everything as humans, something will suffer.  That’s just how it is.  Usually what suffer are our families.  Be it our marriage, or our kids.  We need to refocus and think about our lives, if we were to be alive 15 years from now, what is most important to us?  Is it our careers, being a CEO of a company?  Is it being the best lawyer?  Or is it raising super stars and working part time with it?  I am not saying ladies don’t have careers, all I am saying is that we need to focus on our families too.  Maybe the first 15 years teaching our kids manners, love, respect, haddiths of the Prophet (PBUH).  Most importantly Quran.  Every morning wake them up to pray and read Quran before they leave the house.  Instead of watching cartoons, TV, or doing homework which should have been done already.  I’m saying it is up to the mom’s how their children turn out to be.  They should be our first priority every moment.  And then everything else.  For once we lose them, we lose them forever.  We need to focus on our marriages again.  We need to build families and not just careers.  Allah (SWT) has put us on earth to test us.  One of the tests is motherhood.  Are we really doing what we should be doing, or are we westernized?  Want what the western women want?  Be honest, think about my questions.  I personally see more and more Muslim Women being more westernized than Islamic.  I am not saying we shouldn’t be modernized, just not westernized.  Remember who we are.  Remember that our families are our first priorities and should always be.  If we don’t take care of our kids, with love, knowledge and patience, why will they want to take care of us as we age?  Think about it.  Think deeply.  I will let you read this story to help better understand my point:

A frail old man went to live with his son, daughter-in-law and four-year old grandson.  The old man’s hands trembled, his eyesight was blurred and his step faltered.  The family ate together at the table.

But the elderly grandfather’s shaky hands and failing sight made eating difficult. Peas rolled off his spoon onto the floor.  When he grasped the glass, milk spilled on the tablecloth. The son and daughter-in-law became irritated with the mess.  “We must do something about father,” said the son.  “I’ve had enough of his spilled milk, noisy eating, and food on the floor.”

So the husband and wife set a small table in the corner.  There, Grandfather ate alone while the rest of the family enjoyed dinner.  Since Grandfather had broken a dish or two, his food was served in a wooden bowl!

When the family glanced in Grandfather’s direction, sometime he had a tear in his eye as he sat alone.  Still, the only words the couple had for him were sharp admonitions when he dropped a fork or spilled food.

The four-year-old watched it all in silence.  One evening before supper, the father noticed his son playing with wood scraps on the floor.  He asked the child sweetly, “What are you making?”  Just as sweetly, the boy responded, “Oh, I am making a little bowl for you and Mama to eat your food in when I grow up.”  The four-year-old smiled and went back to work.

The words so struck the parents so that they were speechless.  Then tears started to stream down their cheeks.  Though no word was spoken, both knew what must be done.
That evening the husband took Grandfather’s hand and gently led him back to the family table.  For the remainder of his days he ate every meal with the family.  And for some reason, neither husband nor wife seemed to care any longer when a fork was dropped, milk spilled, or the tablecloth soiled.

I will leave you with this; your child can become anything, but needs your support with it.  Your child needs your love, compassion and patience to teach him or her.  Be the best parent you can be, so that you don’t have regrets later!

For anyone who wants more information on home schooling, or how to make this process happen for them, please email me at zohra@zohrasarwari.com

If you walk into a Kindergarten class and ask the students what they want to be when they grow up, you will hear responses like a fireman, a doctor, a ballerina, a princess, and a police officer. Once those same students enter middle school, their thoughts change to responses like; following the footsteps of their parents, a veterinarian, or a rock star. As those students progress in their studies to high school, you will find they are more thoughtful about their career or lack thereof.

No matter what our thoughts were as children, the reality of life sets in and we accept our need to earn money for purchases. I mean, come on, we do have to eat sometimes, right? Mom won’t cook every meal you need for the rest of your life! Besides that, how are you going to get there without a car and gas to put in it?

From simple needs comes decision. So, we set out to earn that green stuff that puts food in our bellies and clothes on our back. Once we accomplish that task, we begin to realize that we have the potential to earn more money to buy more things. So, how does a person go about earning more money? Well, there are many ways. One of which is simply working more hours. Working more hours brings the acceptance of no social life outside of work.

How do you balance your earnings, your social life, family, and so on. while earning the income you WANT to earn? Only you can answer that for yourself. I can, however; offer you some pointers that I learned in my career endeavors.

EDUCATION

Education is very important when searching for the right career. For some, education is sacrificing a few years to get that degree and hope for a promotion. For others, education is taking some classes at a local community college to specialize in a field. For most, education is learning what is available to you and expanding on it.

Expanding on your college education is a great way to further your current career or begin into a new career. There is no guarantee, however; that you will be promoted or even find a job in that field that pays you what you are asking right out of college. You usually have to prove yourself or have contacts in order to get paid what you are worth.

A community college gets you the hands-on training you will need for a specific field. Sometimes, they are willing to even help you find an entry-level job. This is a quick solution to finding a new career path.

Educating yourself is the hardest part of choosing a career. Whether you decide to pursue college in any form, you still need to educate yourself on the options available to you. Your best resource is to seek the advice of your career counselor in your high school. If you are like me and are a late bloomer, you don’t have that option. This leaves your local libraries, your worldly knowledge, and your local college or university.

THE SEARCH

Contact your local career center or unemployment office and ask if they have placement testing available to you. They may have a different name for it in your area, but essentially, it is a test to tell you what skills you are best at performing. There is no pass or fail, so don’t sweat the word “test”. It simply measures your skills. From there, you can determine what field of expertise you are best at or are best at comprehending and can learn more. Once you understand this information, you have to ask yourself, “Am I willing to work in that field?” or “Do I like that field?” If the answer is no, then decide on something else that you excel in. Your career choice does not necessarily need to be your best skill. For example, I like to work with computers, but my best skill is in engineering. I have NO desire to be an engineer, but I am excellent at problem-solving. Therefore, programming is a skill I have learned and like to do.

Contact the local college or university and schedule an appointment with the career counselor there. Talking with them about the careers available in your area will be a great help to understand what jobs are abundant. If you are willing to move or commute, larger cities have many more opportunities.

Plain and simple, hit the pavement. If you don’t get out there and ask, you will never know your potential. If you are like me, I prefer to work in my pajamas and use the internet for my job searches.

Visit THE one site for searching thousands of job boards, newspapers, classifieds, and company websites here.

http://www.allwantedjobs.com/

Product Description
This digital document is an article from Community College Week, published by Thomson Gale on June 19, 2006. The length of the article is 1459 words. The page length shown above is based on a typical 300-word page. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Digital Locker immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser.

Citation Details
Title: Associate’s degrees–precision production.(2006 SPECIAL REPORT top 100 ASSOCIATE’S DEGREE PRODUCERS)
Author: Gale Reference Team
Publication: Community College Week (Newspaper)
Date: June 19, 2006
Publisher: Thomson Gale
Volume: 18 Issue: 23 Page: 22(1)

Distributed by Thomson Gale

Associate’s degrees–precision production.: An article from: Community College Week

College and Career sound like a long way off for the average high school freshman. But the truth is that high school freshmen need to start thinking about their college and career choice within the next year and a half. The old saying that you are in control of your destiny is very true. But in most cases a student’s destiny is on its way to fulfillment by their junior year. That is why it is so important to follow a few simple rules for your education in high school and to start your search for a college and a career early.

One tip to make your entrance into college more successful is to keep your grades up. Not only do you want to have the best grades you can from high school to college, you also want to carry good grades in college. These same good grades in college will be looked at by your future employer as well as perhaps graduate schools. Another wise tip is to visit your career center at your high school often. This is the place to help you identify your interests, evaluate your skills, assess your values and personal characteristics. Most young students do not go into college hunting with a clear defined goal for their college years or for their future career.

Whether you are a high school or college student actively looking at career and job fairs is a great way to get ideas for yourself on what line of study and eventual career path you might be interested in or would like to change to. Most high school and few college students really look at what they want to be doing with their lives past the moment. But it will be well worth your time in the future to visit those career fairs and expos and to talk to experts or employees in a possible field of study for that future career or dream job.

When having to fill out a resume or job application many employers and grad schools like to see some kind of involvement in a sponsored activity or club from the campus. Just joining usually doesn’t cut it today. Grad schools and employers look for involvement such as leadership skills or your ability to work with a team. Both these skills are highly rated as well as being involved in some kind of community service.

You must have computer skills to survive college and your future career. Computers are the way of schools and businesses. There is hardly any college student today that does not own a laptop computer. Many classroom instructions are delivered via the internet as well as some actual classes are given via the internet only. There is no substitution today for good verbal and written skills. Many colleges require freshman to take writing courses to improve their skills. This is a definitively a skill any future employer or graduate school will be looking at, particularly in your resume’s cover letter or personal statement. If you explore all your options early it will remove a lot of stress in the future.

I would like to go to college in Massachusetts to pursue a counseling career. Doesn’t have to be a certain field of counseling, just in general. Which colleges would I be able to go to so I could get my education and degree in counseling?

If you have been out of high school for a while and are tired of working in a dead-end career, you probably have considered going back to college. If you are intimidated about going back as an adult and are worried about being the only person over 25, don’t despair. According to statistics, since 1998 the number of adult learns has increased 41 percent making over 2.9 million students over the age of 35 going back to college.

If you are planning to go back to college, here are a few things to consider:

1. Flexibility is key. Many colleges and universities offer flexible course scheduling with classes offered nights and weekends. This means that if you are holding down a job while going back to school, you can often tailor your courses around your work. If you have children, many institutions offer campus childcare services. A third thing to remember is that you do not have to go back to school full time; your course load can remain minimal. But, if you are looking for financial aid, you may be required to take a specific amount of hours.

2. Make more money. The higher your education the higher your salary. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, employees with a high school diploma averaged $27,915 a year while those with a bachelor’s degree earned $51,206. Individuals with master’s degrees averaged $74,602. Statistics also show that seventy five percent of future positions will require at least some type of certification or licensure.

3. You didn’t graduate from high school. If you did not graduate from high school but received your G.E.D., don’t despair. Over 97 percent of colleges accept students with a G.E.D. diploma.

4. How will I pay? Paying for college through scholarships and financial aid is much of an option to adults as it is those just graduating from high school. There are various forms of grants and low interest loans that are offered regardless of your grade point average, financial need or credit history.

5. How will I get there? If your community does not have a college and you don’t have time to commute, there are now options. Courses today can be taken online or through distance learning programs. Check with the college or university you are interested in to discuss these options. Remember, if you take distance courses through institutes outside of your state, it may be more costly. You will get a financial break staying with a school in state.

6. Do your homework. After identifying what school you would like to attend, make an appointment with the academic advisor. Be prepared to have a few things with you such as old transcripts – that is if you have attended any college prior. Also, do some homework on what field of study you are interested in. The Occupational Outlook Handbook can help you develop an idea of what types of jobs are out there.

7. Testing. Be prepared to take entrance exams. Although you are not required to take admissions tests such as the SAT or ACT, there are placement tests colleges require for English and Math.

8. Check if your life experiences count for credit. Last, ask whether the institute you want to attend offers credits for life experience. Many schools do this through exams such as CLEP or DANTES. These are called ‘life experience credits’.

Product Description
This digital document is an article from Community College Week, published by Thomson Gale on June 19, 2006. The length of the article is 919 words. The page length shown above is based on a typical 300-word page. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Digital Locker immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser.

Citation Details
Title: Associate’s degrees–communication journalism & related programs.(2006 SPECIAL REPORT top 100 ASSOCIATE’S DEGREE PRODUCERS)
Author: Gale Reference Team
Publication: Community College Week (Newspaper)
Date: June 19, 2006
Publisher: Thomson Gale
Volume: 18 Issue: 23 Page: 16(1)

Distributed by Thomson Gale

Associate’s degrees–communication journalism & related programs.: An article from: Community College Week

Product Description
John Tyler Community College, Chester, VA. Provides practical advice to those teaching nursing students in a community college and addresses the issues associated with students in this venue. Covers how to motivate students, how to help students with poor skills, and time management issues. DNLM: Education, Nursing, Associate.

Teaching Nursing In An Associate Degree Program