Career Development Research Proposal

Career Development Research Proposal

ENGL202: Research and Writing
Career Development Research Paper

Career Development Research Proposal

Portfolio Project Directions and Rubric

This Assessment is worth 15% of your grade

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Outcomes

Completing this Assessment will help you to meet the following:

Course Outcomes

• Develop and support a thesis statement through a written academic essay that contains an introduction, multiple body paragraphs, and a conclusion. 
• Locate and evaluate sources and incorporate them into a written career development research paper with paraphrases and quotations, while using APA format to avoid plagiarism.
• Revise and proofread their own writing to correct stylistic, structural, grammatical, and mechanical errors.

Institutional Outcomes

• Information Literacy and Communication.

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Deadline
Deliverable items for the Portfolio Project will be required at different points during the course. Details for each submission are included below. The timeline is as follows:

Deadline	Activity
See Tracking Calendar	Career Development Research Proposal
See Tracking Calendar	Research Questions
See Tracking Calendar	Reflective Annotated Bibliography
See Tracking Calendar	Rough Draft of the Career Development Research Paper
See Tracking Calendar	Final Submission of the Career Development Paper
See Tracking Calendar	Oral Presentation Assignment

Requirements and Formatting

Your Portfolio Project must be formatted as follows:

• APA formatting
  1. Title and References page
  2. Times New Roman or Arial 12-point font
  3. 1-inch margins
  4. Page numbers in top right corner
• APA Citations
  1. Include information, as well as in-text citations and an entry on the References page, from a minimum of four scholarly and professional sources.
  2. For APA information refer to the Bryant & Stratton College APA Style Guide located in the Student Resource button.

Deliverable Descriptions

The Career Development Research Proposal

You are asked to prepare a short piece of writing indicating the two career paths you have chosen to research for your Career Development Research Paper and indicating what types of research strategies you will use to complete the assignment.  You have the option to research two potential entry level positions you may obtain upon completion of your degree, or you can research career ladder opportunities you may be interested in. Career Development Research Proposal

Directions

You will compose a proposal in the form of a career-appropriate letter.  Please include the following headings in business letter format:

• Introduction:  Discuss the two career paths you have chosen to focus on and whether they are entry level positions or career ladder positions.  Please include how you chose these two options from the wide variety available to you, and why you chose the focus you did.

• Statement of Focus:  Identify the criteria you will use as a basis to compare the two positions in the final essay.  Some of the examples discussed in class include:

• Salary trends
• Potential for growth
• Educational requirements
• Lifelong learning opportunities
• Job duties
• Methods:  Define the primary and secondary sources you will seek out when gathering information on this topic.  While sources such as Occupation Outlook Handbook are a good place to get started and can be used, you need to find references that go further in depth on the job descriptions you are interested in.  Where might you start finding these?

• Limitations:  What obstacles do you anticipate facing while researching your topic?

• Conclusion:  Based on the comparison of the two careers you will present, what do you think will help you choose one position over the other as a future career choice?  Which of the criteria are the most important to you at this initial phase of research?

Assignment Research Questions

This module’s lecture built on skills learned in prior English courses about the importance of good research questions to inform the research process. For this activity, you are to do the following: Career Development Research Proposal

1. Create at least one, but no more than two, research question that will inform you generally about your chosen career. 
2. Create at least one, but no more than two, research questions that will inform you about one of your future career paths that will be addressed in your Career Development Research Paper. 
3. Create at least one, but no more than two, research questions that will inform you about a second future career paths that will be addressed in your Career Development Research Paper. 

The Reflective Annotated Bibliography

This reflective bibliography asks you to individually summarize and critically reflect on the research pertaining to your topic. After the task is completed, you should discover your source materials are accessible and organized and ready to be incorporated into your Career Development Research Paper.

Format:

Focusing on the topic for your Career Development Research Paper, locate four separate research sources. You will need to use the Virtual Library for the research.  To construct the reflective bibliography, read and annotated [to make notes and to critically evaluate] each source; then follow the below listed steps and guidelines for each article.

• Correctly reference each article in APA format.
• Write a brief summary (5 to 8 sentences) of the article.  This part should include what elements of your career choice the article discussed, such aspects as the responsibilities, growth trends, lifelong learning opportunities, etc. 
• Critically evaluate the source (3 to 5 sentences).  This part should address such aspects as author credibility; gaps, inconsistencies or flaws; repetition of information; and whether or not you feel this will be a source you will incorporate in your final piece of writing.
• Each annotated bibliography should be numbered and double spaced in entirety.

The Research

As you begin to interpret, annotated, and draw conclusions about each source, use the following questions to guide you.

1.  Look for specific information the writers may be presenting.  How do they affect your view of the career?

2.  Describe and discuss the method(s) you see each writer employing.  What method(s) do you see used in each of the articles?  Is there a consistency of methods across the articles, or do the methods vary widely?   Why would that be?  Which method works best for you as a reader?  Be specific.

3.  Do you notice any trend(s) or pattern(s) in the articles?  To what degree do the articles match, connect with or give evidence of any trend or pattern you are finding?

4.  What gap(s), if any, do you find in the material each of the articles presents?  Is there a question you have about the field that you cannot find?

Module 6

Rough Draft of the Career Development Research Proposal

Topic

Where will my college degree lead me?  You are now on a path to answer this question.  Throughout your education, you have been exposed to various elements of your future career field. Your task is to write a comparative persuasive essay exploring the choices available to you when answering this question.As stated in your proposal, you will analyze either two career options you can enter upon completion of your degree at Bryant & Stratton College, or you can evaluate two career “ladder” options.

You will research two potential job titles of interest to you within your field as identified in your proposal and provide a research-based explanation as to why one of these career opportunities is the best option for you.

Assignment Requirements

• Define two distinct career paths available to you upon degree completion.  Using the research, you completed for your Reflective Annotated Bibliography, interpret what components are the most important to you and the most appropriate to your skill set.
• The essay must contain a strong thesis statement indicating the two career paths you will be discussing as well as points of comparison between the two.  Included in this will be an indication of your preferred career choice.  The essay will provide support for this statement.
• Information to include in the comparison may contain:
  • The responsibilities, tasks, growth trends, salaries, lifelong learning opportunities, and other relevant aspects the two careers in your field of interest?
  • The areas from the listing above that draw you to this career field and are most important to you. Why is this?
  • The content knowledge expertise required for success in your field of interest.
• A minimum of four sources and a maximum of six must be included in this piece of writing.  These sources will be chosen from your reflective bibliography.
• The essay will be approximately five pages following APA format learned throughout the term.
• APA (American Psychological Association) Citation methodology is also required for in-text citations and the reference page.

Final Submission of the Career Development Research Paper

Take the feedback from module 6 and make corrections for your final submission.

Once complete upload your project to your ePortfolio under the Institutional Outcome in Blackboard.

Oral Presentation

You will prepare and deliver a presentation of a minimum of 5 minutes and a maximum of 10 minutes on the findings of your Career D Research paper. To record your presentation, you should create a PowerPoint with a voice-over. 

Specific directions on how to create a PowerPoint with voiceover can be found in the Student Resources button on the navigation panel.

• The PowerPoint should contain a minimum of eight (8) slides including an introduction slide and a conclusion.
• Please include:

• A brief description of the two careers options you chose to research.
  • An explanation of the points you used to provide the comparison.  For example, job duties, growth trends and opportunities, salary, etc.
  • An analysis of the learning acquired through the phases of this project leading you to identify one career choices as the one you will pursue.  Why did you choose one over the other?  Will you be qualified for this position when you graduate from Bryant & Stratton College, or will there be additional steps you need to take?

You should use your research from Career Development Research Paper for this project; you also must use Microsoft PowerPoint to complete this assignment.

Bryant & Stratton College Workplace Capabilities
Tolerance	Communication	Attitude
Interpersonal Skills	Perseverance	Enthusiasm
Problem Solving	Persuasion	Productivity
Dependability	Informational Literacy	Technological Literacy
	Financial Literacy

For this reflection discuss one Workplace Capability as listed above:

1. Explain your reasoning for choosing these Workplace Capabilities. Analyze the importance of these Workplace Capabilities to your future career.
2. In your own words reflect on how this project meets the Institutional outcomes as stated on the first page.

Upload and submit your final reflection in Blackboard.

Reflection Grading Criteria

Oral Presentation:

• Student’s voice should be clear and easy to understand
• Student should vary his/her tone of voice and use pauses effectively to place emphasis on important points
• Student should provide additional insight to PowerPoint slides in his/her own words. Student should not read verbatim from the slides.
• Student should avoid non-words (“Um,” “Uh,” “You Know”) and practice using professional language

ENGL 202 – Research Questions – Portfolio Project Grading Rubric:
Criteria	Exceeds Expectations	Meets Expectations	Needs Improvement	Points
Research Questions   80 points	80-64 points Each research question is well developed with a scope appropriate to available resources and the terms of the assignment.	63-56 points Most of the research questions are well developed with a scope appropriate to available resources and the terms of the assignment.	55-0 points Some of the research questions are well developed with a scope appropriate to available resources and the terms of the assignment.
Grammar and Mechanics   20 points	20-16 points Consistently correct grammar and mechanics.	15-14 points   Mostly consistent in correct grammar and mechanics.	13-0 points Somewhat consistent in correct grammar and mechanics.
Instructor Comments:		Total Points:

ENGL 202– Reflective Annotated Bibliography Portfolio Project Grading Rubric
Criteria	Exceeds Expectations	Meets Expectations	Needs Improvement	Points
Source Synopses   32 points	32-28 points All four entries address the main idea or goal of research, participants, methods used, and results.	24-20 points Entries begin to address required topics, but lack in thoroughness or only two/three entries address main idea or goal of research, participants, methods used and results.	16-0 points Entries address some, but not all, relevant points of source or one/no entries address main idea or goal of research, participants, methods used and results.
Source Evaluations   32 points	32-28 points All four entries address credibility, effectiveness, tone, technique, value and/or gaps in information.	24-20 points Entries begin to address required elements, but do not fully address each element or only two/three address credibility, effectiveness, tone, technique, value and/or gaps in information.	16-0 points Entries have gaps in relevance of material to final paper.  Some analysis is apparent. Or one/no entries address credibility, effectiveness, tone, technique, value and/or gaps in information.
APA Citations   20 points	20-17 points The writer appropriately used the APA style to cite source.	16-14 points The writer appropriately used the APA style to cite references with minor (<2) errors.	13-0 points Does not correctly cite with consistent errors (>3) evident in the citation of source.
Proofreading   16 points	16-15 points The assignment is error free for spelling, grammar, and punctuation	14-13 points There are a few errors (1 per page) in spelling, grammar, and punctuation.	12-0 points There are many errors (> 2) in spelling, grammar, and punctuation.
Instructor Comments:		Total Points:

For specific grading information, please refer to the Portfolio Project Grading Rubric.

ENGL202 – Career Development Research Paper Portfolio Project Grading Rubric
Criteria	Exceeds Expectations	Meets Expectations	Needs Improvement	Points
Content 40 points	40 – 32 points The writing fully identifies and explores the significant features and details of two career positions and paths.  The paper exhibits an excellent ability to choose, integrate, and document source material in support of the thesis. The writer employs ample appropriate source material to fully support the thesis; integrates it smoothly (as quotes, paraphrases, “borrowed” ideas) effectively to support his/her own original writing.	31 – 28 points The writing, for the most part, identifies the significant features and details of the two career positions and path. The paper exhibits an adequate ability to choose, integrate, and document source material in support of the thesis.  The source material the writer employs is appropriate, though additional support would strengthen the paper; integration could be smoother or more varied.	27 – 0 points The writing lacks specificity in describing significant features and details of the two career positions and path. The paper exhibits a passable ability to choose, integrate, and/or document source material in support of the thesis.  There are places in the paper where points are made but not supported with source material; when used, sources are awkwardly integrated.
Research/APA Documentation  40 points	40 – 32 points The writer evaluates a minimum of four (4) sources; has ensured relevance and reliability; correctly cites the sources within the assignment and in the “References Page”.  The writer thoroughly and correctly documents all sources in text.  The writer appropriately used the APA style to cite references. The paper uses sources in a way that evidences thorough understanding of legal and ethical implications. Text references are appropriately integrated into the assignment.	31 – 28 points The writer evaluates a minimum of three (3) sources; one is not relevant and/or reliable; correctly cites most sources with minor errors (< 2) evident in the citation of sources within the assignment and in the “Reference Page”.   The writer is thorough and correctly documents most sources in the text.  The writer appropriately used the APA style to cite references with minor (<2) errors.  The paper uses sources in a way that evidences a strong understanding of legal and ethical implications of plagiarism.  Text references are appropriately integrated into the assignment most of the time with less than (<2) errors.	27 – 0 points The writer evaluates a minimum of two (2) sources; and demonstrates uncertainty in the evaluation of sources with more than one not relevant and/or reliable; Does not correctly cite with consistent errors (>3) evident in the citation of sources within the assignment and in the “Reference Page”.  The writer does not correctly document and cite sources. Text references are not consistently integrated into the assignment in an appropriate way. The writer does not appropriately use the APA style to cite references; there are consistent (>3) errors.  The paper uses sources poorly or incompletely and does not evidence an understanding of legal and ethical implications of plagiarism, though no attempt to deliberately plagiarize can be detected.   Text references are appropriately integrated into the assignment most of the time with less than (<3) errors.
Grammar/Mechanics/ Language/Structure 20 points	20 – 16 points The assignment is well written according to the rules of Standard English and effectively communicates the writer’s purpose. The assignment is error free for spelling and punctuation. Excellence is demonstrated in sentence construction and use of transitional sentences.  The paper is fluent and effortlessly understandable.  The pattern of organization is appropriate to the assignment	15 – 14 points The assignment is generally well written according to the rules of Standard English and communicates the writer’s purpose. There are a few errors (1 per page) but the errors do not significantly detract from the reader’s understanding of the writer’s intention. There are a few errors (1 per page) in spelling and punctuation. There are a few errors (1 per page) in grammar as expressed through subject/pronoun/verb agreement.  There is evidence of appropriate sentence construction and transitional sentences to connect paragraphs and create meaning within the assignment.  The paper has a clearly recognizable introduction, body, and conclusion and uses a pattern of organization appropriate to the assignment.	13 – 0 points The assignment generally conforms to the assignment requirements and the writer’s purpose is evident, although more development according to the rules of Standard English is required in order to effectively communicate the writer’s purpose. There are many errors (> 2 per page) in spelling and punctuation.  There are many (>2 per page) errors in grammar as expressed through subject/pronoun/verb agreement.  There are many errors (> 2 per page) in sentence construction. Transitional sentences to connect paragraphs and create meaning within the assignment are generally absent. Overall, many errors (>2 per page) in the writings interfere with the reader’s understanding of the assignment.  The paper, though it has an introduction, body, and conclusion and so is basically “correct” in its structure, is in need of a clear organizational pattern.
Instructor Comments:		Total Points:

Portfolio Project Reflection Grading Rubric 200-Level
Criteria/Achievement Level	Exceeds Expectations	Meets Expectations	Needs Improvement	Points Awarded
Articulation     70 points	63-70 points The student’s reflection addresses more than the minimum number of required elements by including the assigned Workplace Capability of “Information Literacy” and more than the required number of additional Workplace Capabilities. He or she provides a deep, thoughtful reflection on the role Workplace Capabilities will play in the student’s current or future career. He or she also provides a thorough and deep examination of the strategies used to complete the portfolio project by addressing specific thinking strategies used and evaluating their effectiveness, thereby demonstrating a clear understanding of the importance of Thinking Abilities. Additionally, the student provides insightful discussion related to the achievement of Program and/or Institutional Outcomes	49-62 points The student’s reflection addresses the minimum number of required elements by including the assigned Workplace Capability of “Information Literacy” and two additional Workplace Capabilities. The student reflects on the role Workplace Capabilities will play in his or her future career.  He or she also discusses strategies used to complete the portfolio project by addressing specific thinking strategies used in creating the portfolio project. The student demonstrates an awareness of the importance of Thinking Abilities. The student addresses Program and/or Institutional Outcomes.	0-48 points The student’s reflection does not address all the required elements. The assigned Workplace Capability may be missing, or the discussion of additional Workplace Capabilities is absent. The student does not make clear connections between the Workplace Capability and his or her future workplace. He or she may not clearly address thinking strategies involved in the creation of the portfolio project, and the discussion related to the importance of reflection may be confused or unclear. The student does not address Program and/or Institutional Outcomes.
Delivery   30 points	27-30 points The student is easily understood, does not use words like, “um,” is professional in appearance, and engaging to watch. The presentation flows and the student transitions naturally between ideas. The student makes excellent use of different inflections, appears enthusiastic, speaks in different tones, and appears comfortable throughout the presentation.	21-26 points The student is easily understood, but may make use of words like “um.” The student attempts to use different inflections, changes tone occasionally, varies tone, and appears comfortable throughout the presentation.	0-20 points The student makes excessive use of words like, “um.” The presentation may be stilted or jarring and the speaker is monotone throughout. The student appears uncomfortable throughout the presentation.
Instructor Feedback		Final Grade

Career Development Research Proposal