Employment

Having the opportunity to get and maintain a job is important for everyone. Some students with disabilities may benefit from services and supports to overcome barriers to meet employment goals. Types of employment goals may include competitive, self-employment, customized, supported, or sheltered. Employment may be full-time or part-time. 

Success at School and Work 

Dr. Kit Careers Videos focusing on 

1. Describe a typical day
2. Educational/ skill requirements
3. Best and worst parts of the job
4. Advice to someone who is interested in the career

Working with Disabilities 

Career Advice and Tips at learnhowtobecome.org

Learn about work and why it is important: http://www.youthhood.org/jobcenter/index.asp

https://explore-work.com/ WINTAC has worked with Employment Resources, Inc. (ERI), the University of Wisconsin-Madison, and the University of Wisconsin-Stout Vocational Rehabilitation Institute (SVRI) to design a series of web-based modules that align with the five required WIOA Pre-Employment Transition Services activities for use with students with disabilities

Explore career opportunities through active participation information gathering:

• http://www.onestopcoach.org/
• https://www.onetonline.org/
• Play the Career Interests game – University of Missouri

Complete the Pocket Resume

Explore possible job accommodations: https://askjan.org/soar.cfm

Set the expectation of work/assist youth in preparing for employment: http://www.pacer.org/transition/learning-center/planning/preparing-employment.asp

Tip Sheets for students/ families to review to gather important information for employment preparation: How to Keep a Job and Disability Disclosure (from Transitions to Adulthood Center for Research)

Mastering Soft Skills for Workplace Success

Skills to Pay the Bills is intended for classroom instruction; however, some lessons may be adapted for home. The curriculum is downloadable and printable – from the Office of Disability Employment Policy.

Mastering a Cover Letter 

Purdue University: Tips on Writing a Stellar Cover Letter

Resume Building 

My Perfect Resume

Make a Persuasive Resume

Take your Resume to New Heights 

Create a Professional Resume

Pocket Resume 

Explore Careers 

Career Exploration and Virtual Job Shadowing - SmartParent Video

Explore Careers in Agriculture and Beyond

National Career Development Association - Internet sites for career planning

A-2-Z Careers/Jobs

Am I ready for work?

Career Exploration 

 Job Search Engines

PA Career Zone

Careeronestop.org 

Career Assessments 

Discover Which Careers Fit Your Personality Strengths at Work: CareerFitters.com

Find out what your interests are and how they relate to the world of work: mynextmove.org

Valuses Assessment can help you learn more about your underlying work needs and motivations: myplan.com

The iSeek survey lets you rate activities you enjoy, your personal qualities and school subjects you like. Then you can see which career clusters are a match for your interests. And this is another quick one, clocking in at five to 10 minutes.

MyNextMove is a tool that uses information from O*Net information, which is sponsored by the U.S. Department of Labor, to help determine your interests as they relate to work. Unlike the other tests, this one asks you how to rate how much you’d enjoy performing very specific work tasks like “building kitchen cabinets,” “laying brick” and “buying and selling stocks and bonds.” It’s really nicely color-coded as well. Hang in there, this one is 60 questions.

Personality Assessments 

This personality assessment is based on Keirsey Temperament Sorter, which divides people into four “temperaments:” guardian, idealist, rational, and artisan. The assessment measures how people communicate and what their actions tend to be. Yes, the test is 71 questions long; no one said getting to your emotional center would be quick. 

Big Five personality assessment divide people into five personality traits: openness, conscientiousness, extraversion, agreeableness, and neuroticism. The assessment identifies a preference out of the five and can help you identify learning styles as well as work preferences.

16personalities' assessment starts with Myers-Briggs dichotomies and adds archetypes from Jungian theory as well as some from the Big Five, which is a psychobabbly way of saying you’ll learn whether you’re an introvert or extrovert if you take this test—and at the end, you’ll be labeled with one of 16 personality types with cool names like “Mediator,” “Commander,” and “Defender.” Most importantly, the test promises to take less than 12 minutes.

**Some of the Employment Resources require parent assistance.**