Transition to Career
SERVICE NOTICE: We're here to support you!
To support physical distancing, our career coaches are working remotely. Upcoming appointments will be moved to either Google Hangouts or phone.
T2C is a career development program designed to help you successfully navigate career transitions during and after university. The program will help you become self-directed in managing your career and support you in developing your knowledge, skills, attributes, and connections.
We are currently unable to accept new clients into Transition to Career (T2C) and Career Coaching. Both services remain active for existing clients.
Please complete this form if you are interested in registering for either program. We will contact you as soon as we are able to accept new clients.
About the Program
Who would benefit from T2C?
T2C can support a variety of career needs, interests, and concerns. You will receive personalized guidance from a career coach, career advising and access to curated online learning material. Below are areas of focus that are common among T2C participants. We suggest identifying an area that matches your primary career needs.
The process of exploring your career starts with uncovering your unique traits and attributes. With the support of a coach, you will reflect on your past and current experiences, identify your skills and values, define what success means to you, learn ways to research career options, and/or consider approaches to making suitable career decisions.
If you are asking yourself these questions, T2C can help:
- What am I good at?
- What is important to me in a career?
- What careers are suitable for me?
- How do I learn more about career ideas?
- How do I choose a career path(s)?
Work search includes looking for a summer job, searching for post-graduation employment, transition from one job to another, creating work search tools to apply to openings, and developing strategies for landing a job. With the support of a T2C coach, you will build and test strategies for finding work, which includes developing your networking skills. With T2C supports, you will refine relevant tools and techniques.
If you are asking yourself these questions, T2C can help:
- What are strategies for finding work?
- How do I build connections in and outside of my field(s) of interest?
- What techniques help build a targeted resume and cover letter?
- How do I use LinkedIn to help me find work opportunities?
- How do I ace the job interview and evaluate a job offer?
Developing professionalism skills and advancing in your career can happen while being a student or working as a professional. For some, career advancement involves determining new and relevant skills. For others, it involves planning an upward or lateral role change in an organization. Defining what career success means to you is an important part of this process. With the support of a coach, you will learn how to brainstorm and prioritize skills development opportunities, explore strategies for taking action towards goals, and map out your next steps.
If you are asking yourself these questions, T2C can help:
- How do I determine the skills needed to advance in my career?
- What types of opportunities can help me develop specific skills?
- What are my next career goals and actions?
- How do I move closer to my career goals of interest?
- What do I balance my work and life?
The Individual Development Plan (IDP) is a crucial part of graduate student professional development and is a tool to assist your career management. It offers opportunities to identify and evaluate the disciplinary knowledge, skills, competencies and experiences academic and non-academic employers are looking for. With the support of a coach, you will work through the IDP together and think critically about your experiences and traits. This allows you to complete the requirement with clarity and purpose.
Questions that will be explored in the IDP with a coach include:
- What or who do I hope to inspire?
- What new things do I want to try?
- What are my main values and preferences?
- What are my strengths and areas for growth?
- What are three career options of interest and why?
- What are examples of the following 7 skills employers are looking for (i.e. creativity, communication, confidence, scholarship, ethical responsibility, critical thinking, collaboration)?
How does the program work?
After registration, you will receive a welcome email and book an introductory coaching session. The session, one of seven, is an opportunity for you to share your career/life story with a coach and begin identifying your current needs. The process of coaching will help you 'investigate yourself' and 'investigate the world of work' deeply. Your coach will guide you towards relevant and useful blended and experiential learning activities that aim to enhance your career management skills.
Explore career resources, through an online learning platform, that have content related to career management skills, self-assessment, career researching, work search tools and strategies, skills development, professionalism, work-life balance, and more.
Online learning modules will focus on how you can:
- Take charge of your career so you can learn about career options and how they align with your unique self.
- Master the skills employers want so you can identify and develop the skills that will increase your competitiveness.
- Land the job you want so you can develop personalized tools and strategies while navigating the job search.
- Flourish in the workplace so you can learn the essentials about life in the workplace and self-management.
What does T2C include?
- Seven career coaching sessions with a certified career coach
- Three topic-specific advising appointments including a Resume Critique, LinkedIn Profile Critique, and Mock Interview
- Online learning modules in eClass to improve your career management and work search skills
Program Details
Regular price is $420 (including GST)
T2C is eligible for the Green and Gold Leadership and Professional Development Grant.
Alumni are eligible for the Alumni Professional Development Grants.
- Go to the campusBRIDGE portal to sign up for an account. Check out this quick video on setting up an account in campusBridge.
- Select your status as student, staff, alumni or guests depending on your relationship to the university. (If you are a student, you can log in using your CCID and password. Other types of users may need to first register for a new user account.)
- Once registered and logged in, go to the Online Store to locate the Transition to Career (T2C) under T2C.
- Go to campusBRIDGE portal and log in to your account.
- Once logged in, go to Career Centre Appointments. You can find all open appointments by clicking on View Calendar, or you can use Book by Appointment Type or Book by Appointment Provider.
For any questions related to how to use campusBRIDGE, email campusBRIDGE@ualberta.ca or check out this quick tutorial.
- About Justin
Justin Pritchard has been employed in various roles at the Career Centre since 2011, including his current roles as a Team Lead and Career Coach for the T2C program. As a Coach, he works closely with clients to help them develop strategic tactics for exploring career options and build targeted work search tools and strategies. Justin is a Certified Career Development Professional (CCDP) through the CDAA, as well as a Certified Master Coach Practitioner (CMCP) through the CCF.
His work at the Career Centre intersects with his role as the Past-President of a mindfulness group on campus. Researching and disseminating information on the relationship between careers and mindfulness is something Justin is known for. He has a long-standing personal and professional practice, which he shares with his clients, colleagues and participants who have attended the health and wellness events he has presented at over the years.
As a parallel career, Justin is a Graphic Designer and Sessional Instructor in the U of A Department of Art and Design. He holds a Master of Design (MDes) degree and a Master's in Curriculum and Instruction (focused on Design and Career Education). Because of his expertise in these areas, he has presented at various conferences on the topic of design thinking in career development.