CAMPUS SECURITY

Collin’s Public Safety Officers are licensed peace officers of the State of Texas and are trained and educated to protect life and both college and personal property. These officers are vested with full authority to enforce all Texas laws and regulations. All Texas motor vehicle laws will be enforced on Collin campuses.

The college complies with the provisions of the Campus Security Act of 1990, Public Law 101-542.

In compliance with the “Campus Sex Crimes Prevention Act” (section 1601 of Public Law 106-386) and the Jacob Wetterling Crimes Against Children and Sexually Violent Offender Registration Act, all persons required to register as part of the State of Texas’s Sex Offender Registration Program are required to provide notice of their presence on campus.

For more information, contact Public Safety at 972.578.5555 or visit www.ccccd.edu/campuspolice/.

CAREER SERVICES & COOPERATIVE WORK EXPERIENCE

Career Services & Cooperative Work Experience (CS&CWE) offers a variety of services to enhance the career planning and exploration process. Five key elements have been outlined to assist students in making career decisions and completing the job search process. These services are FREE to students and Collin graduates while many are available to members of the community. There is a nominal charge to community members requesting career assessments with professional interpretation. Visit our web site by going to www.ccccd.edu, click on “Current Students,” and then click on “Student Services.”

First Key: Self-Assessment

What are your work values and interests, and how do they relate to careers? What school subjects appeal to you? How do you spend your free time? What are your hobbies? What did you enjoy about your previous jobs? What skills do you possess and what careers use these skills? How do all of the above relate to career choices?

Self-assessment is the first element in choosing a career path. The following resources are available to help you learn more about your personality, values and interests:

• Career Assessments: Myers-Briggs, COPES, and COPS • “eDiscover,” an Internet-based career guidance program

Career assessments and professional interpretations are available by appointment.

Second Key: Explore Majors And Careers

Resources are available to help you investigate career fields and explore specific jobs as they relate to your self-assessment. These include:

• Library references with print materials, computer-based information, and various resource directories

• “eDiscover,” an Internet-based career information and assessment tool

• Internet access for occupational research and job search (students)

• Workshops/seminars for career decision-making, job search, and professional development

• Opportunities to learn more about careers: • Annual Career Week (March-April)

• National Career Development Month (November) • On-campus recruiting by area employers

Third Key: Research The Job Market

Job market information, including current trends, salary surveys, and job availability, is provided in the Career Center. Listings containing area employment agencies, human resource departments, and job hot line telephone numbers are also available. National as well as Texas job market information is available in publications and computer programs.

Fourth Key: Prepare and Market Yourself

To help you prepare for entry into the job market, Career Services & Co-op provides resume writing workshops and critiques, interview coaching, and videotaped mock interviews with critiques. These services are available by appointment or call for a schedule of workshops.

Also available are printed materials about: • Cover letters

• Resume writing • Interviewing

• Following up after the interview Technical Career Advisor

A career advisor is available to assist students in Associate of Applied Science programs, students enrolled in certificate programs, and students identified as Special Populations. Assistance is also provided for students seeking employment after graduation. Contact the Technical Career Advisor for job search assistance and for information regarding the online resume posting service.

Fifth Key: Put Learning To Work

On-Campus Employment

Campus departments hire student workers to perform a variety of job functions. Students are eligible to work a maximum of 20 hours per week and are paid well above minimum wage. Student workers are classified as Student Assistants or Federal Work-Study students. Federal Work-Study students must apply and qualify for financial aid. Students qualifying for Federal Work-Study may be eligible to participate in the America Reads or America Counts programs (tutoring grades K–3 in area elementary schools), which pays more than jobs on campus.

Off-Campus Employment

CS&CWE provides job listings for off-campus positions ranging from entry-level to professional. Both part-time and full-time positions are available. A web-based listing of current job openings is available on computer for students and Collin graduates in each CS&CWE office. Students may also upload resumes for employer review.

Cooperative Education is available for students seeking course credit for career related employment. Specific details are outlined under the Cooperative Work Experience heading.

Cooperative Work Experience

Cooperative Work Experience (Co-op) is an educational program (academic course) designed to provide actual work experience that relates classroom study to career choice. Course elements include hands-on work experience, specific learning objectives, and participation in specialized, professional development seminars to build the skills employers are requesting. The integration of academic concepts with planned, supervised work experience assists students in developing greater self-awareness and validating career direction.

Co-op is designed to serve students in two-year technical fields as well as transfer-oriented students desiring academic co-ops. Most positions are paid, and there are also unpaid opportunities in academic co-op fields that require volunteer work to start, such as radio and television. Some disciplines now require academic co-op courses in the degree or certificate plan. Students for whom this applies are encouraged to contact Co-op at least one semester prior to expected Co-op enrollment. Co-op has open enrollment every month based upon when a student accepts a position. Students must obtain permission from the Co-op Office for these courses, and some require prerequisite(s) or instructor permission.

To be eligible, students must have completed at least one semester at Collin, have declared a major for a degree or certificate, have a minimum of 2.5 GPA, have accumulated up to nine credit hours in their major, be able to work at least 20 hours per week, and be concurrently enrolled in at least one additional three-hour academic course at Collin.

A student who is presently employed may use a current job for the academic co-op course if it relates to his/her ultimate career goal.

Students who are seeking related work experience may utilize the Co- op job search assistance service to obtain work that can be used to receive college credit. Work hours for a 16-week semester, along with 16 hours of classroom seminars and setting specific goals for the work period, are the key components of this course, which allows a student to earn credit hours towards a declared program. Work hours per week and number of weeks change with Summer III.

Students are encouraged to contact Co-op about information sessions or other questions they may have. Call 972.881.5104.

Guarantee For Job Competency

Graduates of the Associate of Applied Science (AAS) degree program or recipients of a Certificate of Proficiency, who are judged by their employer to be lacking in technical job skills identified as exit competencies for their specific degree program, will be provided up to nine tuition-free credit hours of additional skill training by the college. Special conditions that apply to the guarantee are as follows:

1. The graduate must have earned the AAS degree or Certificate of Proficiency beginning May 1993, or thereafter, in a technical, vocational, or occupational program identified in the college’s general catalog.

2. The graduate must have completed the AAS degree at the college with 45 hours in residence and must have completed the degree within a five-year time span. All coursework for the certificate must have also been completed at the college within a five-year time span.

3. Graduates must be employed full-time in an area directly related to the area of program concentration as certified by the appropriate division dean.

4. Employment must commence within six months of graduation or certification.

5. The employer must certify in writing, within 90 days of the graduate’s initial employment, that the employee is lacking entry-level skills. These skills must be identified by the college as program exit competencies, and areas of deficiency must be specified.

6. The employer, graduate, division dean, job search assistance counselor, and appropriate faculty member will develop a written educational plan for retraining.

7. Retraining will be limited to nine credit hours related to the identified skill deficiency and to those classes regularly scheduled during the period covered by the retraining plan. 8. All retraining must be completed within a calendar year from

the time the educational plan is agreed upon.

9. The graduate and/or employer are responsible for the cost of books, fees, and other course-related expenses.

10. The guarantee does not imply that the graduate will pass any licensing or qualifying examination for a particular career. 11. The program can be initiated by the employer or graduate,

within 90 days of the graduate’s initial employment, by submitting a written request to the chief academic officer.

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COUNSELING SERVICES