Planning your career

 Marie

Marie had been home raising her three children as a full time Mum for ten years when she decided it was time to reenter the workforce. Marie’s previous work experience before having children was as a medical receptionist. She did not want to work in this area any more, but was interested in what she described as a helping profession.

Marie contacted her local TAFE college and attended an information evening where careers in community services were discussed, she was pleased to discover that her ten years at home were not considered wasted and that she had accumulated some valuable experience in that time.

Some of the competencies she was assisted to identify were:

• Her organizational skills demonstrated through four years in varying positions on the kindergarten committee of management.
• Professional development programs she attended on working with committee’s of management also through kinder.
• Volunteer work with the primary school her children attend assisting children with learning problems with numeracy and literacy skills.
• Varying courses she attended through the school and kinder on parenting skills and dealing with difficult behaviors in children.
• Computer skills she had maintained and developed through the above roles
• Communication skills also demonstrated in the above positions.

Identification of these skills greatly increased Marie’s confidence and gave her a head start in obtaining a qualification as she received considerable recognition of current competency (RCC) through her volunteer and community experiences.