Career Connections: Student Resources

Happenings

  • Resume Feedback Forum

    Career Connections

  • Reminder: Deadline to apply for Youth Conservation Corps is approaching

    The deadline to apply to work at Stewart B. McKinney national Wildlife Refuge as a crew member with the Youth Conservation Corps is April 15.  See Ms. Carson or Ms. Patty for more information.  Your application must include a letter of reference, so don't wait until the last minute!

    Career Connections

  • Resume Feedback Forum

    Career Connections

  • Deadline to Apply for the Youth Conservation Corps

    Career Connections
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Are you ready for career success?

Career Connections experiences offered at Westbrook High School give you the chance to:

  • think about and explore possible occupations with businesses and industries that you may not have thought about;  
  • connect classroom learning to the real world;
  • practice skills in real-world scenarios;
  • develop soft skills (professionalism, communication, teamwork and initiative);
  • observe professionals in action;
  • create a network with potential employers; and
  • develop and improve your personal professional branding.

Why bother?  Because employers are looking for experience and training.  In a recent nationwide survey of  small, medium and large companies in the public and private sectors, employers were asked about attributes that influenced their decisions to hire a job applicant.*  Did you know:

  • 82 percent of employers say that completing an internship is very or somewhat influential in their decision whether to hire an applicant?
  • 92 percent say that completing an internship in their industry was very or somewhat influential in their decision whether to hire?
  • 77 percent of employers say that holding a leadership position in school or an extracurricular organization is very or somewhat influential in their decision whether to hire an applicant?
  • 72 percent of employers say that being involved in extracurricular activities (clubs, sports, student government, etc.) in high school is very or somewhat influential in their decision whether to hire an applicant?
  • 74 percent of employers say that having a high GPA in high school is very or somewhat influential in their decision whether to hire an applicant?

Participation in Career Connections activities help you develop employability skills and attributes employers are looking for. 

Visit Ms. Carson to learn about opportunities to participate in:

  • internships
  • job shadowing
  • industry/business informational panels
  • mock interview workshops
  • resume feedback forums

Ms. Carson can also help you learn about career pathways available to you.  She can help you find business and community mentors for your senior project or your community service graduation requirements.   

*Visions of the Future, Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation Research Findings, 2019.

Tidbits of Useful Information

  • Summer Employment at Stewart B. McKinney National Wildlife Refuge:   Every summer NorthWoods Stewardship Center partners with the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service to hire local youth who work at the Steward B. McKinney National Wildlife Refuge.  The Youth Conservation Corps complete important conservation projects, gain hands-on employment experience and work closely with refuge staff.  Each crew is made up of 4-6 crew members (ages 14-18) and 2 crew leaders (ages 19+).  Th employment season rungs June 22 through 31, 2020.  Crew members work 40 hours per week, Monday through Friday from 8a.m. until 4:30p.m.  Crew members earn $12-12.75 per hour.  Work projects include trail work, invasive species removal, improving wildlife habitat, water quality testing and working with wildlife.  See the Youth Conservation Corps link below under Student Resources for more information or to submit an application.  
  • Consider an apprenticeship in the building trades as a post high school education option.  Apprenticeships offer tuition-free training, and you get to earn while you learn on the job.    Click here for information about apprenticeships in the construction trades (electricians, brick masons, carpenters, construction workers, boilermakers, painters, pipelayers, etc.).
  • Click here for a video of the Medical/Health Industry Panel discussion on December 10, 2019.  Professionals from the industry described their occupations and their career journeys.  Learn what you can do in high school to be successful in the field.  
  • Career/Job Shadow Experience:   Westbrook High School recommends that students participate in career or job shadowing experiences throughout high school so that you can learn about industries and occupations.   Career/Job Shadow experiences happen during the school day.  Students in Grades 9 through 11 are invited to participate in an annual school-sponsored grade-level job shadow experience, but you are also encouraged to shadow independently.  You are excused from classes to participate but you must see Ms. Carson to gain necessary permissions to miss classes.  If you are interested in participating in a Career/Job Shadow Experience,  see Ms. Carson in the Guidance Office.   

Student Resources