The Career Design Lab: Change your Job, Change your Life from Coursera

If your work isn’t fulfilling, now is the time to change direction and design a life you love. This course is for people at any life stage who want a job they enjoy and a career aligned with their values. If you’re languishing at work or feel like quiet quitting is your only option, why not change careers and flourish professionally?

University of California Santa Cruz life design educator Remy Franklin will guide you through the career design process from start to finish in 4-8 weeks. You will define what is important to you in life, discover your core strengths and values, sketch out several possible career paths, and learn authentic networking strategies to help you find your next professional opportunity. Along the way, you will learn insights from design thinking, positive psychology, and career coaching that will help you maintain a positive mindset and make progress with your job search. If you’re ready to change jobs and change your life, this is the course for you.

What's inside

Syllabus

⚙️Welcome to the Career Design Lab

Should I follow my passion when choosing a career? What if I’m not up for it? And how do I make enough time to change careers when I’m busy with a full-time job or a family? This first module will answer these questions and orient you to the Career Design Lab.

⚙️⚙️ Using Coherence as your Career Guide

Before you design a career you love, you need to know what you want. This week you’ll do lots of activities that help you write down what’s important to you in a concrete, specific way. You’ll discover your top strengths, virtues, and skills and write short statements about your life philosophy and what it means to do meaningful work. You’ll learn how to use this self-awareness as a “compass” that guides the rest of your career design process.

⚙️⚙️⚙️ Defining Your Next Career Move(s)

What career paths are you considering? If you’re feeling stuck, how can you come up with creative new ideas? And once you have some great ideas, how should you decide which to pursue? This week you’ll get a crash course in design thinking and plan out three different professional paths you could take next. Then you’ll learn how to explore those paths through authentic conversations that help you decide what you want while building your professional network.

⚙️⚙️⚙️⚙️ Strategies for Getting a Job

Week 4 is about strategies for getting a job. This is the last module of the course and it’s packed with helpful strategies for succeeding at your job search. You’ll learn how long your job search should last, how to think like a hiring manager, tips for sites like LinkedIn, and how to approach resumes, interviewing, and salary negotiation like a career designer. At the end of Week 4 we’ll talk about staying focused on what matters and how to make hard choices.

Good to know

Know what's good

, what to watch for

, and possible dealbreakers

Provides real-world application with authentic networking and strategies for getting a job

Taught by an educator at the University of California Santa Cruz specifically in life design

Provides tools and strategies for staying focused on what matters and making hard choices during a job search

Guided step-by-step through the career design process from start to finish

Helps build a job search timeline to stay on track

Not suitable for beginners who have not yet identified their values and strengths

Activities

Be better prepared before your course. Deepen your understanding during and after it. Supplement your coursework and achieve mastery of the topics covered in The Career Design Lab: Change your Job, Change your Life with these activities:

Identify potential career mentors

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Identify potential career mentors who can provide guidance, support, and advice as you navigate your career design process.

Browse courses on Mentorship

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Consider your career goals and aspirations
Research potential mentors in your field
Reach out and introduce yourself
Request a mentorship meeting

Review career theories

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Review career theories to deepen your understanding of different perspectives on career choice and development.

Browse courses on Career Development

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Read articles and books on career theories
Summarize key concepts and ideas
Create a mind map or diagram to visualize relationships between theories

Analyze past code

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Boosts your ability to analyze and interpret your past work.

Browse courses on Design Thinking

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Gather code samples which you previously worked on
For each sample, identify the problem the code was solving
Take note of the design decisions that were made

Eight other activities

Expand to see all activities and additional details

Show all 11 activities

Create a career vision board

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Helps you visualize and articulate your career aspirations.

Browse courses on Career Exploration

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Collect images, quotes, and words that represent your career goals
Create a physical or digital collage of these elements

Participate in a career development group

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Connect with classmates or peers in a career development group for support, advice, and networking opportunities.

Browse courses on Networking

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Find or join a career development group
Share your career goals and challenges
Provide support and feedback to others

Learn about design thinking

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Improves your understanding and application of design thinking.

Browse courses on Design Thinking

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Research design thinking principles and methodologies
Identify a real-world problem to apply design thinking to
Use the design thinking process to develop potential solutions

Develop a career vision statement

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Create a personal career vision statement to clarify your aspirations and provide direction for your career design process.

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Reflect on your values, interests, and skills
Brainstorm potential career paths
Write a draft of your career vision statement
Share your vision statement with others for feedback

Explore job search strategies

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Enhance your job search skills by following guided tutorials on resume writing, interviewing techniques, and networking strategies.

Browse courses on Job Search Strategies

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Watch online tutorials on job search strategies
Practice writing resumes and cover letters
Conduct mock interviews with a friend or mentor

Participate in career-related contests and competitions

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Showcase your career development skills and knowledge by participating in career-related contests and competitions.

Browse courses on Networking

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Identify relevant career-related contests and competitions
Prepare your submission or presentation
Participate in the contest or competition

Attend networking events

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Expands your professional network and exposes you to potential career opportunities.

Browse courses on Networking

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Identify networking events relevant to your career field
Attend these events and introduce yourself to new people

Contribute to open-source career development projects

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Deepen your career development skills by contributing to open-source projects focused on career planning, job search, or skill development.

Browse courses on Open Source

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Find open-source career development projects
Identify areas where you can contribute
Join the project team and start contributing

Career center

Learners who complete The Career Design Lab: Change your Job, Change your Life will develop knowledge and skills that may be useful to these careers:

Career Consultant

A Career Consultant provides advice and guidance to individuals on career development and job search strategies. This course may be useful for Career Consultants who want to enhance their skills in helping clients define their career goals, identify their strengths and values, and develop effective job search strategies.

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Career Coach

A Career Coach provides one-on-one guidance and support to individuals on career development and job search strategies. This course may be useful for Career Coaches who want to enhance their skills in helping clients define their career goals, identify their strengths and values, and develop effective job search strategies.

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Job Search Coach

A Job Search Coach provides one-on-one guidance and support to individuals on job search strategies. This course may be useful for Job Search Coaches who want to enhance their skills in helping clients define their career goals, identify their strengths and values, and develop effective job search strategies.

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Vocational Counselor

A Vocational Counselor helps individuals with career planning and development, including exploring career options, making career decisions, and developing job search skills. This course may be useful for Vocational Counselors who want to enhance their skills in helping clients define their career goals, identify their strengths and values, and develop effective job search strategies.

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Outplacement Counselor

An Outplacement Counselor provides support and guidance to individuals who have lost their jobs or are facing a career transition. This course may be useful for Outplacement Counselors who want to enhance their skills in helping clients define their career goals, identify their strengths and values, and develop effective job search strategies.

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Life Coach

A Life Coach provides guidance and support to individuals on personal and professional development. This course may be useful for Life Coaches who want to enhance their skills in helping clients define their career goals, identify their strengths and values, and develop effective strategies for achieving their goals.

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Human Resources Manager

A Human Resources Manager plans, develops, and implements policies and programs related to human resources, including career development and employee relations. This course may be useful for Human Resources Managers who want to gain a deeper understanding of career design principles and best practices, which can help them better support employees in their career development.

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Entrepreneurship Coach

An Entrepreneurship Coach provides guidance and support to individuals who are starting or running their own businesses. This course may be useful for Entrepreneurship Coaches who want to enhance their skills in helping clients define their career goals, identify their strengths and values, and develop effective strategies for achieving their goals.

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Organizational Development Specialist

An Organizational Development Specialist works with organizations to improve their performance and effectiveness, often through the development and implementation of training and development programs. This course may be useful for Organizational Development Specialists who want to enhance their skills in helping employees design and develop their careers.

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Leadership Development Specialist

A Leadership Development Specialist works with organizations to develop and implement leadership development programs. This course may be useful for Leadership Development Specialists who want to enhance their skills in helping employees design and develop their careers.

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Talent Acquisition Specialist

A Talent Acquisition Specialist recruits and hires new employees for an organization. This course may be useful for Talent Acquisition Specialists who want to gain a deeper understanding of career design principles and best practices, which can help them better attract and hire top talent.

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Career Counselor

A Career Counselor provides guidance and support to individuals and groups on career development and job search strategies. This course may be useful for Career Counselors who want to enhance their skills in helping clients define their career goals, identify their strengths and values, and develop effective job search strategies.

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Organizational Psychologist

An Organizational Psychologist works with organizations to improve their performance and effectiveness, often through the development and implementation of training and development programs. This course may be useful for Organizational Psychologists who want to enhance their skills in helping employees design and develop their careers.

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Resume Writer

A Resume Writer helps individuals create and edit resumes, cover letters, and other job search materials. This course may be useful for Resume Writers who want to gain a deeper understanding of career design principles and best practices, which can help them create more effective job search materials for their clients.

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Business Development Consultant

A Business Development Consultant helps businesses develop and implement strategies for growth. This course may be useful for Business Development Consultants who want to gain a deeper understanding of career design principles and best practices, which can help them better support their clients in developing and implementing effective growth strategies.

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