CLS 101 - Career Decision Making

Description
A career decision making course for individuals who want to increase self-awareness and more clearly define their career and college major goals. Primary focus will be on increasing self-awareness, understanding personal values, establishing life direction, learning basics of effective decision making, researching suitable careers and academic programs, setting goals and priorities, narrowing career and academic program options, and applying knowledge from the course to have the tools to develop more intentional life direction.

Credit Hours: 1
Contact Hours: 1
Prerequisites/Other Requirements: None
English Prerequisite(s): None
Math Prerequisite(s): None
Course Corequisite(s): None
Academic Program Prerequisite: None
Consent to Enroll in Course: No Department Consent Required
Dual Enrollment Allowed?: Yes
Course Fees: $25.00
Number of Times Course can be taken for credit: 1
General Education Requirement:
None
General Education Learner Outcomes (GELO):
NA
Course Learning Outcomes:
1. Illustrate how a person establishes and maintains life direction through decision making processes.

2. Increase understanding of personal values, interests, and strengths and how they impact satisfaction in work and career.

3. Narrow career and academic program choices beyond the GRCC Academic Pathway decision making level.

4. Summarize the importance of significant influencing factors as it relates to career choice.

5. Identify the top workplace skills and competencies required for specific jobs or job families of interest.

6. Learn how to use labor market data to make educated decisions about career and academic program choices.

7. Establish realistic goals and develop a career plan that includes career and academic program choices as well as other career readiness goals.
Course Outline:
A. Orientation to Career Direction

B. Self-Assessment: Interest + Personal Values Clarification

C. Components of Decision Making Process + Decision Making Styles

D. Exploration of GRCC Academic Programs + ONET Job Families

E. Using Labor Market Information + Trends to increase awareness of financial, geographical, + environmental implications of career choice

F. Understanding strengths and how this intersects career satisfaction.

G. Using job postings to inform career planning

H. Setting Goals for Career Development and Decision Making.

I. Development of Holistic Career Action Plan.

Approved for Online and Hybrid Delivery?:
Yes
Instructional Strategies:
Lecture: 30-40%

Projects: 10-15%

In-Class Activities/Discussions: 20-30%

Career Assessments: 15%
Mandatory Course Components:
None
Equivalent Courses:
None

Name of Industry Recognize Credentials: None

Course-Specific Placement Test: None
Course Aligned with ARW/IRW Pairing: IRW 97, IRW 98, IRW 99

Mandatory Department Assessment Measures:
None

Course Type:
Elective- Offering designed to expand learning opportunities for degree seeking students. May or may not be required for students in a specific GRCC program.
Course Format:
Lecture - 1:1
Total Lecture Hours Per Week: 1
People Soft Course ID Number: 103553
Maximum Course Enrollment: 25
General Room Request: None

High School Articulation Agreements exist?: No
Non-Credit GRCC Articulation Agreement With What Area: No
School: Student Success
Department: College Learning Studies
Discipline: CLS
First Term Valid: Fall 2022 (8/1/2022)
1st Catalog Year: 2022-2023
Name of Course Author:
Sarah Rose

Faculty Credential Requirements:
Master’s Degree (GRCC general requirement)
Faculty Credential Requirement Details:
Licensed Professional Counselor (LPC), Licensed Psychologist (LP) or Limited Licensed Psychologist (LLP) preferred. At minimum, the instructor should have a Master's Degree in either Counseling, Counseling Psychology, or an equivalent area. Knowledge about and experience in the areas of career development theories & techniques, career assessment and interpretation, the world of work, career exploration, and diversity topics related to careers are considered crucial for effective delivery.

Course Review & Revision Year: 2026-2027