DuBois Area High School

Career Exploration Project

Student Information:
Name: Jerica Fischer Grade: 11
Teacher: Mr. Wingard Course: Economics

Career Events and Journal Entry Requirements:

Complete 1 Job Shadow and Reflection 25 Points
Attend 2 Post-Secondary Planning Events and Reflections 30 Points (15 Points for each event)
Complete 3 Career Cruising Activities and Reflections 15 Points (5 Points for each activity)
Total Points 70 Points

Career Events and Journal Entry Overviews:

Job Shadow and Reflection Overview:
This year you must participate in one job shadow AND complete one job shadow reflection. You may choose to do an on-site
job shadow or a virtual Job Shadow on Career Cruising. However, you are required to complete 2 on-site job shadows by the
end of your senior year.
To participate in an on-site job shadow you must complete a DAHS Job Shadowing Form. This form will walk you through the
steps that you must complete before, during, and after your job shadow. To participate in a virtual job shadow on Career
Cruising, you will need to login to your Career Cruising account. Career Cruising has over 1000 professionally produced job
shadowing and videos that deliver interactive and engaging career exploration experiences.
Once you complete your job shadow, you will need to complete a job shadow reflection.
Post-Secondary Planning Events and Reflections:
This year you must participate in two post-secondary planning events and complete one reflection for each event. You may
participate in DAHS post-secondary events or you may decide to attend post-secondary events at other campuses or
locations. Examples of post-secondary events include:
DAHS Post-Secondary Events Post-Secondary Events at other Campuses
● Career Presentations during Tutoring Period ● Group College Visitation Days

● Post-Secondary Visitations (Military, College, etc. ● Individual College Visitation Days

● DAHS Financial Aid Night ● Technical School Visitation Days

● DAHS Post-Secondary Options Fair ● College or Trade Fair

Once you complete each post-secondary planning event, you will need to complete a reflection.
Career Cruising Events and Reflections:
This year you will need to complete 3 Career Cruising activities and complete one reflection for each activity. You will learn
more about Career Cruising in Social Studies.
Job Shadow Reflection
Type of Job Shadow You Completed: Check One
On-Site X Virtual
Reflection Format:
Directions: After completing your job shadow (on-site or virtual), reflect upon the experience using the Job Shadow essay
format.
Job Shadow Essay Format (20 points)
1. (2pts) Paragraph 1: Introduction (2 pts)
a. Why did you choose this job shadow experience?
b. What type of job shadow did you complete? On-site or Virtual?
c. Where did the job shadow take place?
d. Who was the job shadow with?
2. (4 pts) Paragraph 2: Explanation of experiences
a. (On-Site) What did you do during your on-site job shadow?
b. (Virtual) What did they do during the virtual job shadow?
3. (5 pts) Paragraph 3 for On-Site: Supervisor Interview
a. Using your responses from your Supervisor Interview found on the job shadow form, provide a summary of
what you learned
4. (5 pts) Paragraph 3 for Virtual: Explanation of what you learned
a. Provide a summary of what you learned watching the virtual job shadow
5. (4pts) Paragraph 4: Conclusion
a. How did this job shadow impact your career goals? Do you want to continue to pursue this career or do you
want to pursue a different career? Why? What are your next steps?
Job Shadow Artifact (5 Points)
1. On-Site – If you completed an On-Site Job Shadow, you must scan/photograph and upload your Job Shadow Form
2. Virtual – If you completed a virtual Job Shadow, you must include a screenshot of your online Job Shadow Experience.
Job Shadow Reflection Entry:
I chose to job shadow a funeral director because I am interested in possibly becoming a mortician. I thought this
would be a good way to get to see the setting of a funeral home without jumping right into the action because that
can be a little bit scary. I completed an on-site job shadow where I observed Sheri Bush, a funeral director at
Baronicks Funeral Home and Crematorium located in Dubois.
During my job shadow experience I saw how a funeral was organized, and planned. It seemed more
complicated than I thought. By my observations it required a lot of recording and documentation through microsoft
excel and word. Also I was able to see families and friends bring in decorations and cards for their lost loved ones. It
was touching to see how kind and sympathetic the workers at the funeral home were to them. I realized that they
made the experience very comforting for their clients, and made the process go smoothly.
I learned that becoming a funeral director can actually require a lot of training. You have to be able to have
adequate people and communication skills because your clients are often distressed and in a tough situation. Some
days won’t be busy, and others can be hectic so you never know what to expect. Death is unpredictable and can
happen at any time, and is something that needs to be taken care of quickly and with great care. It is especially
difficult to perform this job when the death was someone you had a close connection with or a family member, but
on the other hand it can be rewarding knowing you helped make the process go smoothly for your clients.
This job shadow made me realize that some jobs require a lot more work than I would have expected. I don’t
think I want to pursue this specific occupation, but I am still interested in browsing different careers in this field. This
is because I think I would rather get to work with hands on activities instead of sitting in an office doing a majority
of my work on a computer. I think my next step is to research more careers possibly on the medical side because I
think that is what i’m more interested in.

Job Shadow Artifact:

Post-Secondary Planning Event Reflection

Q: What Post-Secondary Planning event did you attend?
A:
Reflection Format:
Content (10 points)
1. (2pts) Paragraph 1: Introduction (2 pts)
a. What post-secondary planning event did you attend?
b. Why did you choose this event?
 c. Who did you meet with during this event?
2. (4 pts) Paragraph 2: Explanation of what you learned
a. What did you learn during the post-secondary planning event?
3. (4pts) Paragraph 3: Conclusion
a. How did this experience impact your post-secondary goals? Why? What are your next steps?
Post-Secondary Artifact (5 Points)
1. If you attended a DAHS Event, you must scan/photograph and upload DAHS Event Certificate
2. If you did an on-site visitation, must scan/photograph and upload a visitation artifact
Post-Secondary Planning Event Reflection Entry:
I attended a meeting with Pittsburgh Technical College. I chose this event because it was an easy opportunity
to learn about a college without having to travel and research. During this meeting I met with Steve Macri a
representative from PTC.
I like that they are different from any other technical college, offering many clubs and activities which are just
outside of Pittsburgh. It is also a smaller college where you have a better chance of being able to connect with your
teachers and receive one on one training. Out of all the programs they offer the one that stands out to me the most
is surgical technology since I am interested in healthcare.
Overall, I probably would not go to this school since I am looking into four year degrees, and all of the degrees
they offer are two years or less. I am glad to see that this might be one of my options if I have a change of mind in
the future.

Post-Secondary Planning Event Artifact:

I

Post-Secondary Planning Event Reflection

Q: What Post-Secondary Planning event did you attend?
A:
Reflection Format:
1. Content (10 points)
2. (2pts) Paragraph 1: Introduction (2 pts)
a. What post-secondary planning event did you attend?
b. Why did you choose this event?
c. Who did you meet with during this event?
 3. (4 pts) Paragraph 2: Explanation of what you learned
a. What did you learn during the post-secondary planning event?
4. (4pts) Paragraph 3: Conclusion
a. How did this experience impact your post-secondary goals? Why? What are your next steps?
Post-Secondary Artifact (5 Points)
1. If you attended a DAHS Event, you must scan/photograph and upload DAHS Event Certificate
2. If you did an on-site visitation, must scan/photograph and upload a visitation artifact

Post-Secondary Planning Event Reflection Entry:

This career panel displayed members of many different health fields ranging from a nursing home
manager, opthamologist, and a paramedic. The two members of this group that stood out to me
were Mr. Strouse (EMS) and Dr. Shaw (opthamologist). They both talked about how they came out
of high school thinking they were going to be nurses, engineers, etc. This made me realize how
important it is to know what you would like to do and research different career choices before
hand. For example, Dr. Shaw said he job shadowed 1 day a week for three months to ensure he
wanted to pursue the career of ophthalmology. I have always been interested in this field I like that
you get to help make others healthy and know that you made someone’s life better. Mr. Strouse
mentioned that he has to deal with his patients on the worst day of their lives, but he has to have
good social skills in order to comfort his patients. It’s not all education that determines your field it
also involves unique skills that aren’t from a book.

Post-Secondary Planning Event Artifact:

Career Cruising Activities Reflections
Career Cruising Online Assignments
Reflection Points:
1. (5pts) Library Session 1: Reflection 1: Learning Styles Activity Summary
2. (5 pts) Library Session 2: Reflection 2: Career Selector Exploration Activity Summary
3. (5pts) Library Session 3: Reflection 3: Education/School Selector Activity Summary
REFLECTION 1: Learning Styles Activity Summary
Visual Learner
According to the learning style inventory test I am a visual learner. This means I prefer looking at things, and doing
hands on activities rather than listening or reading. Personally I did not think I would be a visual learner, but on the
other hand an auditory learner. I enjoy listening and writing things down, so that is why I thought this. Although, I
do use some visual study strategies such as making flash cards, playing matching games, and creating projects that
incorporate the material I am learning. I found that when I use these study strategies I score better on tests, and
remember the information longer.

REFLECTION 2: Career Selector Exploration Activity Summary

Coroner
This was a career I've never heard of, but it certainly caught my attention. A coroner is a person who discovers the
truth about untimely deaths and decide whether a death was a crime, natural, or an accident. This was something I
was previously interested in due to watching a lot of crime and mystery shows on TV but wasn't sure what this job
was called. If you are a coroner you may have to travel to the scenes of deaths and communicate with the
witnesses. I think it would be interesting and rewarding knowing you received the answer to someone’s sudden
death in order to give closure to their family and friends. Also, one of the attributes it mentioned was being eager
to solve puzzles, and that is exactly what I like to do. I don't give up until I have an answer or a solution to a
problem. Overall, I would consider this career in the future.
Dermatologist
This career stood out to me because I am interested in studying something in the medical field, but I am looking for
a specialty that doesn't require more than four years of training. According to the career selector to be a
dermatologist it requires four years of schooling and you'd most likely receive a pretty decent salary (100K-400k). I
also heard there is a high demand for dermatologists which would be helpful when it comes to job placement.
Overall, I am really interested in this career and it is something i'd definitely consider in the future.
REFLECTION 3: Education/School Selector Activity Summary
Shippensburg
I was interested in Shippensburg because I have been there before. I was curious to look into the programs they
offered, but never had the time to. I was shocked to see that such a small school offered so many majors. The one
major they offered that interests me is criminology. They also have sociology as a major which is something i'm
interested in, but I am not sure how many jobs there are in that field. Shippensburg also has a track team which I
might be interested in joining.
Edinboro
I chose Edinboro University because they offer my majors in the medical and science fields. The one major that
stood out to me was biology. Also, along with that they offer many other majors that interest me such as nursing
and pre-pharmacy. This also seemed like a good choice to me because it is a public school, and is close to my family
here in Pennsylvania.