Facilitating Career Development (FCD) Class
Be a Certified Career Professional
If you are a career practitioner interested in becoming a trained, certified career professional—this class is for you. You can zoom video-conference in from anywhere!
Successful completion of this approved Facilitating Career Development (FCD) course qualifies you to apply for national certification as a Certified Career Services Provider (CCSP) and a Global Career Development Facilitator (GCDF). Recognized worldwide, these credentials are one of the few certifications available for people who provide career advising and counseling. You can also use this class towards the Certified Career Counselor (CCC) credential.
Note: Approved by VSAC for the Vermont Nondegree Grants
What Makes Our Classes Unique?
This is a very practical class adapted to make your experience personalized.
Linda Sollars, instructor, has 17 years of experience teaching the FCD class.
Included in the course fee are a set of Skills Card Sorts (e-version if you are not in the USA) and a copy of Jim Peacock’s book, A Field Guide for Career Practitioners. We also bring in guest speakers on the diversity competency and a speaker from the Department of Labor for labor market information.
Do You Have a Group Interested in Training?
We are open to providing an FCD class to meet your needs. If you have at least 10 people who would like this course delivered at a time and location that would work for you, please contact me.
“I loved all that I learned in this course- and it was so great to be in a cohort with people from other areas who are also doing career services related work- the stories and experiences really added to it.”
TO REGISTER: Choose the tab below for the class you want.
October-December class
Dates: TBD
Cost: $1299 (Does not include textbook)
Live Class Schedule
All “live” classes are on Zoom.
Schedule coming soon!
3 graduate or undergraduate credits available for an additional $435 (checks only)
*Participants are required to attend all ten (10) live classes for course completion. Instructor reserve the right to modify the dates as needed.
February-June class
Live Class Schedule – 2025
Note: The asynchronous (non-live) portion of the class begins Monday, February 3, 2025.
All “Zoom-live” times below are 8:30 am – 12:30 pm (Eastern Time Zone)
CLASS 1 (2 half-days): Thursday, February 13 & Friday, February 14
CLASS 2: (2 half-days) Thursday, March 13 & Friday, March 14
CLASS 3: (2 half-days) Thursday, April 10 & Friday, April 11
CLASS 4: (2 half-days) Thursday, May 8 & Friday, May 9
CLASS 5: (2 half-days) Thursday, June 5 & Friday, June 6
CCSP Credential Assessment Prep (Optional) Wednesday, June 11 10am-Noon (Eastern)
Note: The asynchronous (non-live) portion of the class continues 2 weeks after the final “live” class, June 20.
3 graduate or undergraduate credits available for an additional $435 (checks only)
Live Class Sessions
Video-conference using zoom from your home or office
Register Now to save your seat!
Class dates are: February 3 – June 20, 2025
Cost: $1299 (Does not include textbook)
*Participants are required to attend all five (5), live classes, for course completion. Instructors reserve the right to modify the dates as needed.
Learning Objectives
Learning Objectives
By the end of the Facilitating Career Development (FCD) Course, participants will show proficiency in the 12 FCD Competencies (formerly known as CDF) established by the National Career Development Association:
1. Helping Skills – Be proficient in the basic career facilitating process, including productive interpersonal relationships.
2. Labor Market Information and Resources – Understand labor market and occupational information and trends. Be able to use current resources.
3. Assessment – Comprehend and use (under supervision) both formal and informal career development assessments with emphasis on relating appropriate ones to the population served.
4. Diverse Populations – Recognize special needs of various groups and adapt services to meet their needs.
5. Ethical and Legal Issues – Follow the FCD code of ethics and know current legislative requirements.
6. Career Development Models – Understand career development theories, models, and techniques as they apply to lifelong development, gender, age and ethnic background.
7. Employability Skills – Know job search strategies and placement techniques, especially in working with specific groups.
8. Training Clients and Peers – Prepare and develop materials for training programs and demonstrations.
9. Program Management/Implementation – Understand career development programs and their implementation and work as a liaison in collaborative relationships.
10. Promotion and Public Relations – Market and promote career development programs with staff and supervisors.
11. Technology – Comprehend and use career development computer applications.
12. Consultation – Accept suggestions for performance improvement from consultants and supervisors.
Course Info
Who The FCD (formerly known as CDF) Training Course Is For
If you are a career practitioner interested in becoming a trained, certified career professional—and you live in the Maine/New England area—this class is for you.
You’ll develop the skills to meet CCSP and GCDF credentialing requirements for jobs in many different sectors. And you’ll be more attractive to prospective employers because they know you have met national standards and have developed a clearly defined scope of practice. To find out more about the CCSP and GCDF certification can help you, visit the NCDA website or read this.
Past participants have come from a variety of work settings, including:
- Academic Advising (professional staff & faculty)
- Middle & Secondary School Counseling
- Adult Education departments
- High School School-to-Work programs
- College Career Centers
- Department of Labor Career Centers
- Workforce Development agencies
Textbook
Book: Facilitating Career Development Training and Certification Program Student Manual, Revised 5th Edition, published by NCDA, 2023. Please purchase the book prior to the start of the class.
Click here for the Print version at NCDA ($275)
Click here for the Online version at NCDA ($250)
Note: The $100 certification application fee is included with the cost of both the print and online editions.
Payments Refunds
Payment is due a full month prior to the first day of class unless other arrangements have been made with the instructor. Please contact Jim for payment plan options.
Refund Policy
- All requests for refunds must be received in writing. Email is preferred.
- Requests more than two weeks before class begins, 100% refund If you have paid through PayPal, Venmo, or our Quickbooks invoice, we will refund you minus their fees.
- Less than two weeks, refund of 50% of the total cost of the class.
- Once class begins no refunds.
- Class beginning is defined as the day we begin the online portion of the FCD class (not the first live session).
TESTIMONIALS
What others are saying
Jim’s CDF course was amazing. I learned a great deal about the labor market, the economy and counseling techniques. I also got hands-on experience and after each class, I returned to my campus and applied the new learning immediately!
Jill-Barlow-Kelley
Director of Internships and Career Services, College of the Atlantic
Feedback from participants in Jim’s CDF workshops shows the level of experience and expertise he brings to the table. Jim translates his theoretical experience and expertise into practice, making the content more authentic and accessible to participants.
Susan M. Campbell, Ed.D.
Associate Vice President for Academic Affairs, University of Southern Maine | Former President, NACADA
The CDF class was very informative and is definitely worth the time and effort. I highly recommend the CDF course for anyone who is involved with counseling clients regarding life changes, as career is critical to success in life.
Joanne L. Richards
MEOC Advisor for Mid-Coast Maine
My FCD class updated my awareness of labor trends, labor market information and counseling strategies. And it reintegrated passion into my career planning and college planning services with MEOC participants.
Sally Daniels
Director of Project Services, MEOC, University of Maine
The CDF class provided specific, current information that I was able to put to use with students immediately. Especially helpful was the opportunity to share best practices and networking resources with colleagues.
Karen MCGrady
Former Director of Academic and Career Planning, Maine Central Institute
As a vocational counselor, I found the class very helpful, especially all the information about career testing and assessment. Jim and Catherine really took the mystery out of this topic. It was also quite enjoyable to learn form the other students all the many ways that career development and facilitation can be used.
Nancy A. Munroe, CRC, GCDF
Unum
The class was fantastically helpful. It did a marvelous job of providing a concise overview of the best assessment and career research tools while allowing us to build a solid understanding of career theory and labor market trends. The variety of in-class activities, off-site visits and independent work was very effective.
Mariah Bumps
Former Assistant Director of Career Services, Bates College
The exercises allowed me to reflect on my counseling skills and hone some of the questioning and reflective dialogue I had been using, thus allowing me to improve my career counseling skills. As counselors, we sometimes get ‘stuck in a rut’ and tend to stay with what we know. This class allowed me a glimpse into alternative theories and assessment tools—and to experience other methods.
Tricia S. Dyer
Asst. Director of Academic and Career Advising, UMA
I found the CDF class extremely helpful in the career prep piece at the vocational center. On numerous occasions I was able to use what I had learned in class with students the very next day. The CDF class has been one of the most practical classes I have ever taken.
Ann Thiboutot Schoenthaler
Students Services Coordinator, Skowhegan Regional Technical Center
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