The Minnesota State Career Planning Workbook provides activities to help students focus on their job search.
How to Use this Workbook
Print activities from the Career Planning Workbook here.
To find fillable PDF, accessible versions of individual workbook activities, scroll down.
- Assess Yourself
Understand your skills and interests and learn how to match them to careers. - Career Exploration
Learn about career fields, clusters, and pathways. - Create a Plan and Set Goals
Find worksheets to help you plan your search and create a schedule of activities. - Find a Job
Learn how to write a quality resume, answer interview questions, and fill out a job application. Understand some common job search challenges so that you can better prepare for a job interview. Learn the benefits of networking and find ways to connect with employers. Also, find social media tips. - Manage Your Career
Learn how to keep your job once you’ve found it. Find ways to reduce stress, and learn how to leave a job on good terms. - Appendices
Find career planning resources for:- People with Disabilities
- Military Connected
- People with a Criminal Conviction
- LGBTQ
- International Students
Individual Interactive Worksheets (Fillable PDFs)
Download interactive versions of individual worksheets below. To use the interactive features, you need to download the file and open it using Adobe Acrobat Reader.
Adobe Acrobat Reader is available for your mobile device from the App Store or Google Play.
People are more successful and satisfied when their interests and skills are a good fit with the job they have.
In this section, you will learn more about your personal skills, interests, strengths, and values so you can choose a job that is a good match for you. Knowing what is important to you will help you find and keep a satisfying job.
- Transferable Skills (pdf)
- Matching Interests to Work Options (pdf)
Find the online interest assessment for this activity here. - Strengths (pdf)
- Work Values (pdf)
Find the CareerOneStop Work Values Matcher used with this activity here. - Occupations that Best Match Your Assessment (pdf)
In this section, you will focus on the important details of what you really want when looking for a job and how to use a schedule to benefit your job search. By using these tools, you will be able to organize your search into a step-by-step process and manage your time wisely.
Although you might not use all the suggestions offered, you will get an idea of how your search can be more concentrated.
- Employment Planning Worksheet (pdf)
- Job Search Schedule (pdf)
In this section you will learn about how to improve skills that are important for obtaining a job.
Networking
Job Applications
- Application with Errors (pdf)
- Application for Employment (pdf)
Resume and Cover Letter
- Resume and Cover Letter Tips (pdf)
- Sample Resumes and Resume Templates (pdf)
Sample Resumes:
CareerOneStop Sample Resumes
Creative Job Search Sample Resumes
Resume Templates:
You can download these resume templates as Microsoft Word Documents to edit. Alternatively, if you have a Google account, you can Sign In to open this file with Google Docs. In Google Docs you will need to create a copy of the file that can be edited.
Functional Resume Template
Chronological Resume Template
Combination Resume Template - References (pdf)
Job Interview
- Managing Stress (pdf)
- Professionalism (pdf)
- Sexual Harassment (pdf)
- How to Leave a Job on Good Terms (pdf)
Find additional career planning resources for:
About This Publication
This workbook was created in 2020 through a collaboration with:
- Century College
- Inver Hills Community College
- Minnesota State Career and Technical Education
- Minnesota State CAREERwise
- North Hennepin Community College
- Rochester Community and Technical College
- St. Cloud State University
- Southeast Service Coop
Some of the content in this workbook was adapted from content created by Goodwill-Easter Seals of Minnesota and is used with their permission.
You may also be interested in career planning workbooks for these audiences:
- Career Planning Workbook for People with a Criminal Conviction
Step Ahead to a Successful Job Search - My Career Plan for English Language Learners
- My Career Plan for Adult Basic Education
