To many people, the term “career practitioner” or “career developer” might seem vague, but many of us have dealt with professional career practitioners more often than we realize. They’re working in your human resources department. They’re guidance counsellors, career coaches, staff at Nova Scotia Works centres and social workers. There are countless titles and roles, but they all have one thing in common: career practitioners are the “go-to” experts you can depend on to help make life and career choices.

In the fall of 2021, the Nova Scotia Career Development Association (NSCDA), in partnership with the Dalhousie University Faculty of Open Learning & Career Development, introduced a bursary program to award 10 people from African Nova Scotia, Indigenous, or new-to-Canada communities the opportunity to complete the Dalhousie Certificate of Professional and Leadership Studies for Career Practitioners.

 

 

One of the bursary recipients, Sabreet Ghumman, is a Case Manager with Nova Scotia Works, YMCA of Cape Breton, who is working on her Career Development Practitioner certification with the NSCDA. Originally from Gurdaspur, India, Sabreet has a Bachelor of Arts degree from Rabindranath Tagore University. She arrived in Canada in 2018 to study Social Work at Sheridan College in Ontario, graduating in 2019 and she accepted the position in Cape Breton shortly after that.

Sabreet was able to transfer skills learned studying social work to her current position. “Social Services is very broad field and what inspired me to make employment services my niche, was my journey as a newcomer looking for a job in Canada. Newcomers experience multiple barriers that prevent entry into the fields of our training and education. These challenges have been further exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic. I was very disappointed and sad when I saw my friends and other international students working in completely different fields from what they had studied,” says Sabreet.

 

 

Using funding from her bursary, Sabreet began taking courses towards the Dalhousie Certificate of Professional and Leadership Studies for Career Practitioners in September of 2021. She is confident this is the right decision for her career, “it has already given me more knowledge and skills to provide better employment services to my clients. I want to inspire people to turn their passions into careers by overcoming barriers. I want to provide people with tools and resources to achieve their career goals.”

The convenience of online courses works well for Sabreet since she has a full-time job. “The fact that classes are online and in the evening works perfectly with my schedule. The classes are well designed and the professors are great at communicating and assisting us when necessary.”

The certificate includes six online courses that are 12 weeks each. The courses are designed for anyone employed in the career services field. Learners will gain a better understanding of how to support people through career transitions, job loss, and grief, and explore the concepts of diversity and inclusion by reflecting on their own unique experiences.

If you work in the career development field or want to expand your knowledge in this area, contact Dalhousie University’s Student Services team at [email protected] or visit the website at Dalhousie Certificate of Professional and Leadership Studies for Career Practitioners.

---

• For more Web Exclusives, click here.