Chaffey College Career Services

Career Services

Cooperative Education
Student Handbook

Table of Contents

Section-1: Welcome
Welcome
Requirements
Orientation
Getting Started
Schedule Appointments
Dates to Remember
Due Dates
Employer Participation
Learning Agreement

Section-2: Appointments
First Appointment
Guidelines for Objectives
Supervisor Review
Follow up Appointment
Site Visit Appointment
SCANS Self-Evaluation of Skills
Grading Appointment

Section-3: Course Materials
Student Information Sheet
Student Handbook
Course Material Packet

Section- 4: End Of Term Projects
Career Research Project / One & Two Units
Career Portfolio Project (print version)
Journal Project
Small Business Project
Internship Preparation Project
College Transfer Project
Standard Projects
Project Options

Section-5: Internships
Field Research
Informational Interviews
Internships

Section-6: Seminars
Attendance
Seminar Homework

Section-7: Career Success
Your Success
Career Services
Dropping Coop/Incompletes

Appendix

COOPERATIVE EDUCATION
WORK EXPERIENCE

WELCOME!

Congratulations! You've enrolled in a course in which your assigned learning activities will be determined by your current work assignment, educational plans and career goals, whatever they may be, and however definite or indefinite they might be.

Co-op Ed links your classroom learning to learning at work. You will begin with your present work experience activities. In particular, you will need to identify two new things to learn at your work - new skills to develop, or old ones to sharpen.

REQUIREMENTS

This Student Handbook is for students who have enrolled in Coop 96 or 497 classes.

You must be enrolled for 7 units, including your Coop units.
Your supervisor must agree to participate in your Co-op program.
You are responsible for the information in the Student Handbook.

ORIENTATION

A mandatory one-hour orientation will be conducted by an instructor. You will receive course materials and learn about the course requirements at this time. Your first appointment with an instructor will be scheduled at the orientation.

An on-line orientation is now available, please call our office to get more extended information. You may meet the orientation requirements by running the Orientation and Learning:

1. What will occur at your first appointment and how to prepare for it.

2. How to write a learning objective.

3. Course requirements.

GETTING STARTED

Begin by enrolling in Coop Ed 96 A-D or Coop Ed 497 A-C. The On-Line Orientation will get you started. So review the text, video clips, links and packet materials carefully. Take and pass the short quiz at the end of Chapter seven.

SCHEDULE APPOINTMENTS

Call or come into the Co-op Ed Office to schedule your first appointment with a Co-op Instructor. Co-op Ed and Student Employment, together known as Career Services, are located in the Student Activities Center on the main campus.

You will have a minimum of four meetings with a Cooperative Education instructor. It is your responsibility to ensure these appointments are made and kept. If rescheduling of any appointment is necessary, contact the Cooperative Education office as soon as possible. These four meetings are defined as:

First appointment: Learning Agreement

Second appointment: Follow-up Appointment

Third appointment: Site Visit

Fourth appointment: Grading Appointment

DATES TO REMEMBER

*A Dates to Remember Sheet will be given to you during orientation

DUE DATES OF ALL COURSE WORK

All course work will be due on a designated day, generally the 13^th week of the semester (5^th week in the summer). You will be given a Dates to Remember sheet and Course Check list at the beginning of the semester. Please refer to the dates to remember sheet for the specific date. The following materials will be due at this time:

End-Of-Semester Project (Double spaced, typed, and inserted in a binder with a tabbing system/ table of contents. Include any pertinent material you will be submitting.)
Timesheet (Signed by student and supervisor. This will be used to document the required number of hours.)
Employer Evaluation (Signed by student and supervisor.)
Student Evaluation (Signed by student.)
SCANS Self- Evaluation of Skills. (Submit CT Choices printouts.)
Seminar Homework (One typed page per seminar.)
Graded Learning Agreement (Signed by student and supervisor. Supervisor must insert a letter grade, example; "A", "B", etc. on the extreme right side of the form in the box provided for #1 and #2. Students grade themselves in the boxes provided to the left of the supervisor grade.)

You do not need an appointment to turn in your materials on the day due. The Career Services staff will receive your materials, checking in each item. You are required to sign the course work check-in sheet after this process is completed. This will ensure that you are aware of any materials that are missing and give you the opportunity to turn in any incomplete paperwork. Submit these materials prior to or on the due date.

ALL LATE MATERIALS WILL RESULT IN A 5 POINTS PER DAY DEDUCTION TOWARDS YOUR FINAL GRADE. REMEMBER THAT EACH AND EVERY DAY COUNTS!

EMPLOYER PARTICIPATION

Review the materials in your packet. Give your supervisor the letter explaining his/her participation in your program, and jointly develop your two learning objectives.

LEARNING AGREEMENT

The LEARNING AGREEMENT delineates the learning objectives, the end-of-term project, and the seminars you will be attending. The learning objectives are a crucial element for the learning experience. The Cooperative Education instructor, student, and work supervisor all have input regarding this Learning Agreement.

You are provided with a worksheet draft in addition to the original three-part Learning Agreement. Using the learning objective ideas provided in this handbook (See Appendix), you and your supervisor will prepare the first two learning objectives. You are expected to have objectives #1 and #2 completed when you arrive for your first appointment with the instructor. Have these objectives written on the three-part Learning Agreement and signed at the bottom of the form by your supervisor. Objective #3 will be career related. Your instructor will help you identify this objective in the Appendix. Please review the ideas related to this objective in the Appendix and be prepared to indicate which objective you have a desire to work on.

If there are changes in your work/internship site, hours, or anything that may inhibit you from completing the project and objectives identified in your Learning Agreement, you must contact the Cooperative Education office immediately. If you have not submitted your Learning Agreement by the designated time frame, you may be dropped from the class.

SECTION-2

FIRST APPOINTMENT

During your first meeting with your Co-op Instructor you will confirm your Learning Agreement objectives, seminar requirements and your end-of-term project.

Your follow-up, site visit and grading appointments will all be scheduled at the end of your first appointment.

GUIDELINES FOR OBJECTIVES

A learning objective has 3 parts. You must identify: 1- What you will learn, 2- How you will learn it, and 3- How it will be measured. Objectives 1 and 2 must describe 2 new things you will learn at your work this semester. These objectives should be modest in scope-achievable by the end of the semester. Learning Objective #3 should be career related. Review the Ideas for Learning Objective #3 in the Appendix, and be prepared to discuss this objective during your first appointment with your instructor.

*See Appendix for guidelines for writing learning objectives

SUPERVISOR REVIEW

Your supervisor must approve, and later evaluate your progress on these objectives. So draft them on the single page draft of the Learning Agreement and review them with your supervisor. Then rewrite the final version on the triplicate form and have your supervisor sign it.

FOLLOW UP APPOINTMENT

To ensure that you are on the right track with your class requirements and to answer any questions you might have, you must schedule a mandatory follow-up visit with your instructor. Be sure to bring the documents which show your progress on your project and other assignments.

SITE VISIT APPOINTMENT

During the term, a Co-op Instructor will visit you at your work site to meet with you and your supervisor. It is vital that you be present at this meeting. The support of your work supervisor and the organization is very important to the success of your Cooperative Education experience. Although every attempt will be made to schedule your appointment during your regular work schedule, this is not always possible. In this instance, an effort must be made on your behalf to be present during the visit. The instructor will meet with you individually at the site to discuss your progress on the Learning Agreement, then meet with you and your employer to discuss your work, areas of improvement and career advancement. This date will be set at the beginning of the term and is noted on your Learning Agreement. Please discuss this date with your employer and contact our office immediately if any changes need to be made. A letter of confirmation will be sent and a reminder telephone call will be made before your appointment date. Please ask your supervisor to have the Employer Evaluation completed prior to the site visit so it may be reviewed with you and the instructor during the appointment.

The purpose of the site visit is to:

Review your progress on your learning objectives and the end-of-term project.
Discuss your accomplishments, performance goals and career advancement opportunities with your employer and plan for your career growth.

SCANS SKILLS SELF-EVALUATION

Before your grading appointment, you will need to identify and describe the Employability Skills you used in your project and your learning objectives, using the SCANS Self-Evaluation handout and the Choices CT software. Learn about career options that use your skills.

GRADING APPOINTMENT

At your grading appointment, your instructor will evaluate your work and award your grade, based on the points you have earned.

The Grading Scale for both Coop 96 and 497 is located in the Appendix. Coop can be taken 4 times or 16 units whichever comes first.

SECTION-3: COURSE MATERIALS

STUDENT INFORMATION SHEET

When you come into the Co-op Office to pick up your packet, you will be asked to complete the Student Information Sheet included in your packet. So please bring the information required to complete this form - employer address, phone number, etc.

STUDENT HANDBOOK

Please refer to the Student Handbook for descriptions of each document in your packet. It is expected that you will thoroughly read the Student Handbook and have an understanding of all course materials. Any questions you have can be answered at your first appointment.

COURSE MATERIAL PACKET

Your course materials packet contains:

Student Handbook: Information and requirements for this course. Included in the Student Handbook will be:

Course requirements
Sample Learning Agreement
Ideas for learning objectives
Ideas for career development
Seminar homework guidelines
Grading sheet

Learning Agreement:

Worksheet draft
Three-part original

Timesheet: Determines units earned during the semester based on the following criteria:

Paid Hours - 1 Unit = 75 hours, 2 Units = 150 hours, 3 Units = 225 hours, 4 Units = 300 hours

Unpaid Hours (Internship) - 1 Unit = 60 hours, 2 Units = 120 hours, 3 Units = 180 hours, 4 Units = 240 hours

Student Evaluation of Employer: An evaluation done by the student of their work site. This will be kept confidential and will not be made available to your employer or co-workers.

Employer Evaluation of Student: An evaluation completed by your work site supervisor and reviewed with you by your supervisor. The purpose of this evaluation is to inform the instructor of your progress in your employee skills, job performance, and to give you feedback about your work. This is significant in determining the points allotted for the employer’s portion of the grade. Please ask your employer to have this evaluation completed at the time of the site visit.

Employer Letter: Make sure your employer receives this letter as soon as possible after beginning Cooperative Education. It includes the following:

A description of the services offered to you and an explanation of the program.
A description of the role of the employer, the student, and the Cooperation Education staff.

SECTION-4

END OF TERM PROJECT

One of the things Co-op Instructors like about Co-op is that they get to work with students who are at any and all stages in their career development.

Students who have already set definite career goals may not have thoroughly researched their field. Or they may not have connected with professionals in their career field. Or they may lack experience. Others have only begun to think about their career interests.

For the undecided student, the recommended end of term project would be career research. The first assignment would be to run one of Chaffey’s career planning software programs — EUREKA or Choices CT — print out the results and discuss them with a Coop Instructor.

What you learn about yourself and the world of work, by running Choices CT or EUREKA, is a good beginning. Career research, in the library, on the Web and in your networking contacts with professionals, is the logical follow-up.

Your project assignment will be determined by your present career and educational plans. So, review the project options and discuss your ideas at your first appointment. Project examples are available in the Co-op Office.

Standard End of Term Projects

END-OF-TERM PROJECT is a requirement of your Cooperative Education class. The project may be one of the following:

Career Planning Portfolio*
Internship Search*
College Transfer Project*
Career Research Project*
Small Business Project*
Journal Project*
Professional Development Project
Individual career advancement topics

A Cooperative Education instructor will assist you in deciding on the appropriate end-of-term project. This project is to be double-spaced, typed, and organized in a binder with a tabbing system. Organization and appearance will be considered. If you have any questions or concerns regarding your project, please call our office well in advance of the due date. There are several sample projects available in our office for your review if you are uncertain about what your project should contain or how it should be organized.

*Also available on the Co-op Web site.

PROJECT OPTIONS

Your end of term project may be a custom-designed special project and may extend over more than one semester.

Previous Co-op students have done collaborative projects with other Co-op students. Discuss these options with your Co-op instructor.

The End of Term Projects posted on Co-op’s Web site and described in detail in the handouts, are in a constant state of revision. As we learn what has worked well for students, successful strategies, links and resources are incorporated into the projects.

SECTION-5: INTERNSHIPS

FIELD RESEARCH

"60% of our career research should be done face to face", according to Howard Figler, a leading career development expert. (Expert from Career Advantage video#13. This and many more career videos are available in the Co-op Office and the Library.

INFORMATIONAL INTERVIEWS

Developing a personal statement which describes you and your learning/career quest, and using it in conversations - informational interviews - with experts in a field of interest, can bring a wealth of information and valuable professional relationships.

INTERNSHIPS

Doing an internship is one of the best ways to accelerate your career. It's the logical follow-up to a series of informational interviews. An internship can enable you to apply what you are learning in class, validate your career goals and strengthen your resume/portfolio.

A listing of current Chaffey College internships can be found on the main campus in Student Employment, and off-campus, at the Terra Vista Center. The JOBTRAK link on Co-op's Web site will also access these listings.

If available internships do not meet your needs, consider doing an Internship Search as your End of Term Project. You must be enrolled in Co-op Ed to qualify for a Chaffey College internship.

The Workforce Preparation program's Internship Coordinator can assist you in preparing to contact an employer regarding a listed internship, and in establishing an official Chaffey College internship when you have located an interested employer.

SECTION-6: SEMINARS

SEMINAR ATTENDANCE

All students are required to attend one hour of career related seminars for each credit of Coop. If you are enrolled in a 4 unit Co-op class, you must attend a total of 4 hours of seminar; 3 units - 3 hours, etc.

Each semester Co-op Ed offers a series of career development seminars, on and off campus, on a variety of topics. Pick up a seminar list in the Co-op Office or access it on Co-op's Web site.

Employer sponsored seminars or professional presentations or conferences may meet this requirement, so tell your instructor about your seminar options, outside Co-op. Your instructor may also approve selected videos as seminar credit.

SEMINAR HOMEWORK

Prepare a one page double-spaced type written report on each seminar you have attended (reports that are not a full page in length will not receive full credit). Include in this document:

Presenter name
Seminar title
Date and time the seminar was held
Term and year

Address the following questions:

Identify some of the major concepts or ideas that were shared in the seminar (1/2 page).

How will you apply this information in your career, education, or personal development?
What suggestions do you have for improving this seminar?
What other topics would you like to see presented?

SECTION-7: CAREER SUCCESS

YOUR SUCCESS

Co-op has something to offer students in each of the college's programs, and that something could change your life. It has for other Co-op students. Although, what you get out of it is directly related to what you put into it. Take your assignments to heart and do your best work.

THIS COULD BE THE MOST VALUABLE CLASS IN YOUR COLLEGE EXPERIENCE. INVEST IN YOUR FUTURE, KNOW HOW TO USE YOUR EDUCATION IN THE WORKPLACE.

CAREER SERVICES

Career Services staff is here to assist you in making your Coop experience productive and rewarding. Please let us know how we’re doing (on the Student Evaluation form).

DROPPING COOPERATIVE EDUCATION OR RECEIVING AN INCOMPLETE

Before deciding to receive an Incomplete or dropping this course, please speak with your Cooperative Education instructor. Working with the instructor, solutions can often be found that will enable you to complete this course. If you decide, after speaking with an instructor, to take an Incomplete or drop this class, it will be your responsibility to initiate this process by filling out an Incomplete Request Form (available in the Career Services office) and completing this process through the Admissions office. In some extreme situations, students may be granted an Incomplete for this course. This request must be submitted prior to the course work due date. A response to this request will be sent to you.

Appendix

*Dates to Remember will be giving to you during orientation

CHAFFEY COLLEGE COOPERATIVE EDUCATION PROGRAM

LEARNING AGREEMENT GUIDELINES

PART I — EMPLOYMENT INFORMATION: to be filled out by student.

PART II — LEARNING OBJECTIVES: Numbers 1 and 2 to be filled out by student and job supervisor. The instructor and student will complete number 3.

PART III — END OF TERM PROJECT: Completed by instructor and student.

PART IV — SEMINARS: Completed by instructor and student.

PART V — Completed by instructor and appointments set by office staff.

SIGNATURES REQUIRED PRIOR TO LEARNING AGREEMENT DUE DATE

EXAMPLE 1

Part II — LEARNING OBJECTIVES: Please identify your learning objective below:

NEW SKILLS/KNOWLEDGE

What will be learned?

Broad overview and understanding of the operations of Community Services.

How will it be learned?

On the job experience, assisting with the following: brochures, preparation, flyers, news releases, staffing, scheduling, budgeting, mailing, and marketing.

How will it be measured?

Oral evaluation, examples of work, and student reporting.