The Online Career Development Service Model
Adapted for J.L. Bedsole Scholars and Alumni
Originally authored by Jim Kellen

"Worker shortfalls of about 18,700 and 53,100 are estimated by 2016 and 2025, respectively, due to strong economic output growth combined with relatively low labor force and population growth rates, low labor force participation, and low educational attainment in the region."

The above quote was taken from State of the Workforce Report III: Region 9 courtesy of the Southwest Alabama Workforce Development Council Region 9 (www.sawdc.org). It illustrates the growing need for career professionals joining the workforce in Southwest Alabama, and this affects all J.L. Bedsole Scholars and Alumni living in the Region 9 area.

To further aid those in the J.L. Bedsole community, The Career Development Service Model is being designed first and foremost as a career development guide for Bedsole Scholars and Alumni. It is also a work in progress and will continue to grow as new information and material comes available. It was developed by Jim Kellen, who is the executive director of the Southwest Alabama Workforce Development Council for Region 9. 

The purpose of the service model (as adapted for this website) is to help J.L. Bedsole Scholars and Alumni think in terms of detail about themselves, their skill sets and their individual career choices in life. It also serves to inform them of resources and includes general academic guidance for choosing majors. It is divided into three different sections that follow a coordinated progression of thought from an initial self assessment all the way through to successful employment and beyond. The sections are as follows:

• Self Assessment
• Career Information
• Decision Making & Goal Setting
• Developing Employability & Job Readiness
• The Job Search Process
• Successful Employment
• Career Counseling & Lifelong Learning Options
• Re-activated Job Search for Alumni

Each item in the outline contains links and/or downloadable PDF files that offer more information about the topic. References include developing employability and job readiness skills as well as guidance of graduate school and job search data. 

Overall, The Career Development Service Model serves as an additional resource The J. L. Bedsole Foundation Scholars Program provides to its Scholars and Alumni is an additional initiative to enhance the college experience. It is intended to be used as an additional resource, and the links and information provided will be updated as often as possible. Careful thought is put into the order of the material presented so that one can think in terms of steps and details in their endeavor to prepare them for professional success.

As Jim Kellen once said, "the product is not the ultimate career decisions they (J.L. Bedsole Scholars and Alumni) will make for themselves; the product is the process itself of arriving at these decisions."

Proceed to The Career Development Service Model.