Workforce Essential
Skills Training
Career Resources
Welcome to Workforce Essential Skills Training (WEST)!
WEST was created with the goal of equipping young adults, like yourself, with the essential skills and knowledge you need to be successful in your career. This online tool consists of a series of 5 easy-to-navigate modules, packed with a wide range of resources that are built to support you in achieving your training and employment goals.
Each module focuses on its own unique topic:
- Identify Strengths and Career Exploration
- Labor Market Information
- Personal Brand
- Job Search and Networking
- Interviewing
We recommend you proceed through the modules in the order they are presented. You can also always go back to a prior module if you need to refresh your knowledge.
Be sure to take time to check out the various online resources referenced in each module. In particular, don’t miss out on the websites and videos included on any of the “For More Information” slides included in each module’s presentation.
We hope WEST becomes a valuable tool in your career journey, and we look forward to helping you further your goals!
Module 1 – Identify Strengths & Career Exploration
Identifying your strengths and interests is a wise first step when exploring career paths.
What if you are a shy and reserved person and you think a career with a high level of customer-facing activities is lucrative to you? Would you be happy? Would you be a top performer? How long would you stay in that job?
Once you have identified your strengths and interests, you can look at occupations that align with those strengths and interests.
Career pathways are small groups of occupations within a career cluster. Occupations within a pathway share common skills, knowledge, and interests.
In this module, we will walk you through 2 key resources to get you started.
Module 2 – Labor Market Information
Charge into your career exploration and job search efforts armed with Labor Market Information (LMI) that will help you in making informed decisions regarding your education and career pathway.
LMI includes employment estimates, labor force participation, industry and occupation employment and wages, education and licensing statistics, and projected employment growth.
Questions LMI can answer:
- What industries and occupations are growing in my area?
- How much do different occupations pay?
- Which careers match my skills?
- What are the job openings in my area? What are the hot jobs?
- What education, training, and credentials do I need for specific careers?
In this challenging environment, it is especially important to be an informed consumer regarding your career, especially understanding occupations that have a “Bright Outlook.”
The following module will introduce you to 4 tools to get started in your career pathway.
Module 3 – Personal Brand
Think of a major company that you trust or feel confident about paying for their products or services. What have they done to make you think positively about them? It could be the quality and reliability of their products, or that they treated you well, or even that the company simply has a cool look or appearance.
Now, think about someone in your life that you look up to or have a good relationship with. What is it about them that makes you feel that way? Maybe they’ve shown that you can trust and rely on them when you need something. Maybe they’re someone who always treats others with respect. Maybe they carry themselves with confidence and are always willing to go above and beyond for you.
Whether you’re talking about a company or a person, there are several things that impact your reputation. Your “Personal Brand” is the reputation you create for yourself in the workplace and influences how employers and coworkers view you as a professional.
In this module, we are going to explore what goes into creating your Personal Brand and how it can set you up for success.
Module 4 – Job Search & Networking
Knowing how to effectively conduct your job search and understanding the ins-and-outs of networking in a professional environment are key components of finding the right job. Job search and networking are also two areas where you begin to create a first impression with employers. You have the opportunity to showcase your interpersonal communication skills and how you interact with other professionals.
In this module, we will provide some essential tips and tricks to help you navigate your job search. We will also present you with a crash course in networking, including several professional networking strategies.
Module 5 – Interviewing
The final module is about interviewing.
An interview is your chance to shine. You can talk about your recent accomplishments, highlight your skills, and demonstrate your passion about contributing to a company reaching its goals. It is your chance to connect the dots for the hiring managers, showing how you are the best fit for this job, connecting your skills and abilities specifically to the needs of the company.
In today’s climate, many companies have migrated to video interviews. Video interviews save the employer time and money.
However, many people go into an interview –in person or virtual–without prior preparation.
This module will guide you through preparing for an interview, tough interview questions to tackle, questions for you to ask the interviewer, and follow-up negotiations after the interview.
