1. CDO CareerCasts:
A 24/7 Training Approach
for Students
Samara Reynolds
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
NCDA Conference 2015

2. Roundtable Objectives
 Share best practice for virtual program delivery, including
the types of information that work well in this format.
 Train participants on two technological mediums for
virtual programming, including providing examples for
how to train others.
 Provide insight into marketing strategies and assessment
outcomes that were helpful for our office in expanding
the scope and reach of this resource.
 Help others think about creating or improving virtual
presentations and tutorials on their campuses.

3. The CareerCast Idea
 Seeking new ways to train and educate students,
especially during academic breaks, on virtual resources,
and/or on “niche” topics
 Team buy-in and contributions were critical
 Format: Narrated slide decks and screen captures
 Length: 10-15 minute recorded presentations
 Content: Timely, wide-ranging topics outside the realm of
normal hour-long presentations
 Presenters: Different staff members could present on
topics of interest to them
 Distribution: Initially shared via weekly newsletter (link),
then available 24/7 via website

4. Our 10 Topics
 Symplicity System & On-Campus/Off-Campus Interviewing
 Introduction to Symplicity
 Symplicity Job Bank Tutorial
 On- and Off-Campus Interviewing
 Job Search
 Creating Your Unofficial Transcript
 Successfully Transferring to UNC Law
 JD-Advantage: Making Your Case for Non-Legal Job Opportunities
 Interviewing
 Behavioral Interviewing
 Networking
 Networking Over Winter Break
 LinkedIn for Law Students
 Summer Experience
 Making the Most of Your Summer

5. Technology
 Microsoft PowerPoint
 Best for topical presentations where slide text supports auditory
content
 Screencast-o-matic.com
 Best for showing how to use a given technology in real-time
 Both FREE and user-friendly mediums

6. PowerPoint Method
 Used most often
 Staff often familiar with PPT already, just needed help with recording
audio and turning into a video
 Asked staff to:
 Decide upon a topic they thought would fit our model and student interests
 Create a PPT presentation with 10 slides or less (using template)
 Write out a script/notes for their presentation, aiming for
10-15 minute verbal delivery
 Record their presentation, using office headphones + mic, asking
for assistance if needed
 Send final PPT presentation to me (for their convenience)
to add animations and convert into a video
 Demo

7. Screencast-O-Matic Method
 Used for Symplicity-focused sessions
 Easier to walk-through where to click and what a student would see
via screen share than lots of screen captures + circles/arrows
 Had office expert write script and then narrate, while I navigated the
website per her instructions (made for best flow)
 Can stop and start and re-record
as many times as you want to
 Doesn’t save your presentations
for free; you have to download
and save videos yourself
 Demo

8. Sample CareerCasts

9. Marketing & Distribution
 “COPE” (Lindsey Pollak)
 Weekly e-Newsletter
 Roll Out + Reminders
 Webpage + Homepage Button
 Counselor Encouragement + Sharing
 Mentioning in Presentations &
Publications

10. Analytics
 Creating Your Unofficial Transcript (debuted Jan 2014): 289 views
 Introduction to Symplicity (debuted Nov 2013): 198 views
 On- and Off-Campus Interviewing (debuted Jan 2014): 151 views
 LinkedIn for Law Students (debuted Dec 2013): 141 views
 Behavioral Interviewing (debuted Jan 2014): 136 views
 Making the Most of Your Summer (debuted May 2014): 91 views
 Symplicity Job Bank Tutorial (debuted Dec 2013): 78 views
 Networking Over Winter Break (debuted Nov 2013): 72 views
 JD-Advantage (debuted Dec 2014): 35 views
 Successfully Transferring to UNC Law (debuted July 2014): 10 views
= 1,200+ unique page views

11. Program Success
 Combining two in-person "Navigating Symplicity" workshops in 2012-2013
(November & January), 63 students attended total (23 in Nov and 40 in
Jan).
 In contrast, from Nov 2013 – Feb 2014, we had a combined 152
individual students view the three Symplicity-focused CareerCasts
(71 for the Intro to Symplicity video alone)
 AND each video has more detailed information and helpful screenshots
than would have been possible in a live presentation.
 Serving [89/2.5x!] more students more effectively, in a 24/7 format

12. Lessons Learned & Future Suggestions
 Actively think of ways to convert live programs to CareerCasts for
more or different participation
 Create programs just for virtual viewing, when it makes sense
 Ideal to have each staff member contribute on a topic they have
knowledge in
 Best to take time to add animations to slides so that viewer doesn’t
get bored listening when all words are already on screen (add visual
interest)
 The shorter the better!
 Make sure content translates from year to year (don’t mention dates)
 Make content available as a vodcast (video + audio) and podcast
(audio only), if possible; add option to access transcript of sessions

13. Questions?
 In what ways do you use video technology and/or pre-recorded
presentations to reach your students?
 Which of your current programs could you see converting into a
CareerCast-type video?
 What new program topics could you or your team address as a
CareerCast-type video?
Thank you!
Samara_Reynolds@unc.edu