1. PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT
PROJECT
By Lauren Panell

2. SHORT-TERM GOALS (6 MONTHS-1 YEAR)
 Graduate in December 2015
 Start looking for a job in the C&FS field
 Continue working summer job and save
money
 Figure out what I do and don’t want to
keep from my room at home

3. LONG-TERM GOALS (1-3 YEARS)
 Make transition from summer job to one
in the C&FS field
 Find an apartment where I find a job
 Investigate the child life specialist and
Autism certificate more in depth

4. DESIRED CAREER/POSITION
 In-home ABA therapist for children on the
Autism Spectrum

5. FUN FACTS ABOUT ABA
 ABA stands for Applied Behavior Analysis.
 There are two main branches of behavior
analysis: experimental and applied
 It used to be called behavior
modification
 According to autismspeaks.org, ABA is
“the use of these techniques and
principles to bring about meaningful and
positive change in behavior.”

6. TECHNIQUES OF APPLIED BEHAVIOR
ANALYSIS
 Chaining: Breaking down the skill into the smallest units for easy learning;
prompting is when the therapist or parent provides assistance and encourages the
desired response from the child.
 Task analysis: Analyzing into components which are then taught through chaining.
 Fading: Eventual point where the child no longer needs prompts.
 Shaping: Current behavior is gradually modified into the desired behavior.
 Differential reinforcement: Provides a response to the behavior that will most likely
increase that behavior(focuses on positive), it is differential because the level of
reinforcement varies depending on the child’s response; reinforcement can be
positive(reward) or negative (taking something away to decrease a behavior)-
{The difference between negative reinforcement and punishment is negative
reinforcement gives the child a “choice” and punishment takes away what they
“want” in order to decrease the behavior.}
 Generalization is using a skill in a more general environment once it has been
taught in a controlled environment.

7. REQUIRED EDUCATIONAL BACKGROUND
 Possession of a minimum of a master's
degree from an accredited university in
behavior analysis, education, or
psychology, completed in a degree
program in which the candidate
completed a BACB approved courses.

8. JOB DESCRIPTION
 As an ABA therapist I would have to learn
how to use all of these techniques and it
would be on an individual basis-what
works for one child may or may not work
for another.

9.  $34,000
Projected Salary

10. PROJECTED CAREER GROWTH
 “According to statistics released by the
Center for Disease Control and
Prevention (www.cdc.gov); one out of
every one hundred ten children in the
United States has an autism spectrum
disorder (ASD). As the need for ABA
treatment and therapy for ASD increases,
job opportunities are also likely to
increase.”

11. INDIVIDUAL CHARACTERISTICS AND
STRENGTHS NEEDED FOR SUCCESS IN THIS
POSITION
 Ability to collaborate with parents, other
family members, co-workers, the child
identified

12. PROFESSIONAL DRESS REQUIREMENTS
 Business casual -something that allows
me to move around with children and sit
on the floor

13. PROFESSIONAL ORGANIZATION(S) AND
PUBLICATION(S) RELEVANT TO SELECTED POSITION
 National Education Association
IDEA/Special Education
 American Psychological Association
 Autism Society.
 Journals and magazines like Autism
Spectrum Quarterly, Autism Parenting
Magazine, and Autism Advocate.

14. ADVANTAGES OF THE POSITION
 Very rewarding
 Hands-on
 Challenging
 I will be making a difference in a child’s
life
 This is a field I have become very
passionate about

15. DISADVANTAGES OF THE POSITION
 It will take some time to get all the
requirements completed, but it will
definitely be worth it in the end
 Challenging