Gary's Address

Gary's Address Educaship: Revolutionizing Career Preparation Through Real-World Experience

Introduction

Hello, everyone. I'm Gary. For over a decade, I've been dedicated to integrating 'education,' 'career support,' and 'work-like fellowship' into a unified concept I call ‘Educaship.’ My experience in both the business and nonprofit sectors has convinced me that the potential of this approach is significantly underestimated.

My speech will last almost an academic hour. While 40 minutes may seem long, the information I'll share could save you and your loved ones years. It also has the potential to improve quality of life and contribute to a better world. That's why I personally support this mission through donations and volunteer work.

I want to emphasize that I'm not here to pitch any specific offerings. As of this recording, we don't market any products. However, this could change by the time you watch this video. Shorter, more focused presentations on our career solutions should be available online when you’re interested.

My goal today is simply to share my observations, identify problems, and explain my actions to solve them. I encourage you to use the chat feature for your comments and questions. Your insights and queries will help improve this presentation for future listeners and potential participants.

Reflection 1: Education Meets Career

Career trajectories almost always deviate from what was studied in college, and my story is an example of that.

While I was in high school, I became really interested in physics, thanks to a great teacher and enthusiastic classmates. This interest led me to choose a career as a mechanical engineer when I went to university. After graduating, my parents helped me get my first job, but after a couple of years, I realized it wasn't right for me.

Wanting to create something new, I found myself caught in a lot of bureaucracy during the late Soviet Union. As the communist system fell apart, new opportunities opened up, and I got involved in some exciting projects. For two years, I even ran a city youth initiative fundation, supporting projects like a youth café and the first cable TV in my hometown.

After Belarus became independent, I started a company specializing in computer publishing systems. This field was just starting out in the early 1990s. Since there was no formal training, we had to teach our employees ourselves. As technology advanced, we kept innovating by developing our own systems for managing clients and business operations.

I appreciate my first higher education and have good memories of my student years -- it was a great time! However, it's clear that my first degree hasn't had a major impact on my professional life so far. Although, since life isn't over, I’ll say it hasn't had a major impact yet.

Had career interests been discovered earlier, the job search would have been different. There were probably innovative opportunities in mechanical engineering, but neither my parents nor I knew that we needed to look for them. Given opportunities to explore different fields before college, I would likely have chosen a different specialty.

Though my parents had great intentions, they weren't career experts. We had no idea how to explore different career paths or even that it was possible to explore them.

Reflection 2: Career as a Journey

Career is a lifelong journey. It involves finding professional opportunities, mastering new skills, obtaining qualifications, and searching for jobs. Our careers are not set in stone; they change over time. Here's why:

1. Personal Changes: As we grow, our interests, skills, and circumstances change. What we aspire to at 16 is vastly different from our goals at 40 or 60. New experiences create new demands and shift fleeting whims.
2. Work Changes: Tools and methods are constantly evolving. Take mechanical engineering, for example. In the 1980s, when I specialized in this field, engineers used paper and pencils. By the 2000s, they had switched to computer programs. Now, they use 3D printers for rapid prototyping. In the future, they will rely on AI and robots.
3. World Changes: New technologies, economic shifts, and cultural trends create new jobs while making others obsolete. For instance, AI and robots are transforming many professions. There are hardly any people whose work is the same as that of their grandparents.

In school, I thought that five years of university would be enough to prepare me for life. My institute in the Soviet Union claimed to provide a solid foundation of knowledge. But after 40 years of career, I wonder: what foundation did I really gain by acing a course called 'Scientific Communism'?

Even for more relevant subjects, much has changed. AI-based chatbots now provide more information than any university curriculum. And unlike universities, they can supply knowledge on demand, right when we need it. Do we still need to memorize potentially outdated information?

Continuous learning and adaptation are no longer optional; they are essential in our changing world. Overall, if careers are adventures with unexpected twists, shouldn't higher education adapt in a similar way? The order should be turned upside down -- education based on career, not career based on education.

Reflection 3: Practice-Classroom Mix

In the late 1990s, I was consumed by the day-to-day operations of running my business. Ironically, a broken leg became a catalyst for my professional growth. Confined at home in an era before widespread internet access, I found myself yearning for mental stimulation.

Recognizing my predicament, my mother borrowed a book from the library -- Philip Kotler's "Marketing Management." This text was nothing short of revelatory. It opened my eyes to a wealth of pre-existing knowledge, theories, and strategies that I had been struggling to discover on my own.

Inspired by this newfound perspective, I returned to college in the early 2000s to pursue a business degree. This decision proved to be a turning point in my career trajectory.

It's important to note that my business school was the first in Belarus and was set up with help from the international community. For example, we had many opportunities to use role-playing games and practical exercises created by Harvard Business School.

We got our graduation certificates in both Belarusian and English. The U.S. Ambassador to Belarus gave us the English ones. Also, all the students were either business representatives or executives of foreign companies in Belarus. I think we learned a lot from each other, maybe even more than from our teachers.

My previous work experience breathed life into the academic concepts I encountered. Abstract theories turned into practical tools as I realized their application in real-world scenarios. This connection between classroom learning and professional experience ignited a passion for studying, as I clearly saw their relevance and potential impact.

The combination of academic studies and practical experience has taken my career to new heights. With both theoretical knowledge and practical skills, I successfully grew my publishing business to 120 employees, allowing me to sell it for a profit.

The blend of real-world experience and classroom learning works well because they support each other:

• In school, we usually start with big ideas and theories, then learn how to use them in specific situations. It's like learning the rules of a game before playing it. But we also learn from examples and experiments in school, which is more like learning by doing.
• In the real world, we mostly learn by doing things hands-on and trying different approaches. But we also use what we've learned in school to help us solve new problems we encounter.

Both ways of learning help us become well-rounded and skilled. What we learn in school becomes more meaningful when we use it in real life, and our real-life experiences make more sense because of what we've learned in school. This balance between theory and practice helps us grow and become more effective in our future careers.

Reflection 4: Career Advice Insights

In the mid-2000s, I moved from Belarus to the United States. I was over 40, full of energy, and eager to move forward, but I didn't know where that "forward" is. The competencies I had acquired in Belarus seemed to hold little value in this new country. The print publishing industry was shrinking globally, not to mention in America, and my non-native English presented an additional hurdle. At this stage of my life, I had an inkling of what type of work would suit me, but I had no idea what that work was or how to figure it out.

Here, I want to step away from my personal story and take a broader look at career counseling as a whole. I believe that society at a global level is interested in ensuring people are satisfied with their work. I also think that it benefits the government for people to earn more and, consequently, pay more taxes. From this, we can conclude that both society and the state should invest in helping people choose their professions.

As far as I know, career counseling is not a top priority in schools. Employment services tend to focus more on helping people find jobs rather than helping them find the right field. Career services are generally limited to written tests and interviews, with recommendations based on the results of those tests and interviews.

I sought help from career counselors at government agencies, private companies, and non-profits. I received numerous transactional tips on resume writing, interview techniques, and self-promotion. However, no one was able to offer me the transformative assistance that would help me, with my skills and existing competencies, secure the highest-paying job in the shortest possible time.

Career counselors, much like coaches, ask, "What job are you looking for?" When I tell them I'm trying to figure that out, they direct me to aptitude tests and career catalogs. Most career counselors are like doctors without diagnostic tools. Professional situations are complex, yet counselors are expected to provide recommendations without the equivalent of medical tests, relying solely on the words of the individual, either directly or through questionnaires.

Instead of solidifying my career strategy, I identified three groups of problems related to the most common career tools:

1. Overly Simplistic: Tests try to match our personalities and skills to jobs, but they don’t take into account how complex jobs and workplaces can be, nor do they acknowledge that our interests and skills change over time.
2. Outdated Information: Career counselors often focus on what we want rather than on what jobs are actually available. They may not be aware of the latest developments in various industries.
3. Not Person-Centric: Tests do not consider the qualifications we already possess. They lack respect for what the test-taker has achieved. While career tests can be helpful for teenagers, they can confuse adults.

In terms of my own job search, the entire process turned out to be a waste of time. And my experience is not unique. I remember a woman who disliked her job as an administrative assistant. A career counselor suggested she would be better suited for a technical writing position. She spent a year trying to get such a job but was unsuccessful, ultimately returning to her role as an administrative assistant.

I would argue that the weakness of career selection services limits social mobility. As a society, we do not provide children with a broad range of opportunities. Instead, we steer them toward traditional or familiar careers based on either their random observations or their parents’ experiences and expectations. As a result, we restrict access to new industries and high-paying professions that could help break the cycle of poverty and expand future prospects.

Returning to my own quest to find my place in the American economy, I began by studying English, understanding that strong language skills are necessary for any professional job. Then I chaotically enrolled in college courses, glad that many institutions were willing to offer financial aid. By the 2010s, I was close to finishing my bachelor's degree in the U.S., but I still hadn't found meaningful work that I both desired and was qualified for.

Reflection 5: Inside of Career Prep

Like many immigrants, I worked basic cash jobs to make a living during my early years in the United States. To strengthen my resume, I registered a non-profit corporation called the Economic Group and took on the role of its volunteer director -- a commitment that continues to this day.

Combined with my Belarusian diplomas, this American experience allowed me to teach business classes part-time. I started at a community college and later expanded to other colleges and universities. Since the late 2000s, I've had the opportunity to teach not only in the U.S. but also in China and Russia. Interestingly, I ended up teaching almost every course I took while working on my business degree.

I also organized academic exchanges and programs for students to study in different countries. Additionally, I assisted in reviewing several college programs and, for many years, directed educational projects for international visitors invited by the U.S. State Department.

These insights helped me understand how colleges prepare students for their future jobs. The competencies needed for a job can be divided into three main groups. We call them "KSA" for short:

• Knowledge (K): This is the information learned about a subject. It's the easiest and cheapest to teach because it mainly requires an instructor and some basic materials like books.
• Skills (S): This involves using knowledge to do practical things. It costs more to teach because it requires special equipment such as labs, simulators, and machinery for hands-on learning.
• Abilities (A): This relates to being capable of performing specific tasks required for a job. It's the most expensive to teach because it needs real-world settings, individual assignments, and feedback from experts.

College budgets are tight, so they often focus on traditional teaching methods like lectures, textbooks, and exams rather than giving students chances to develop practical skills and gain real work experience. Even though universities might say otherwise, they can't avoid trying to cut costs and increase profits.

As a result, most students graduate with some basic knowledge in their field but lack the hands-on skills needed for successful careers.

Higher education faces a significant challenge: while colleges focus on imparting knowledge, the high costs of gaining professional experience often prevent students from acquiring it before graduation. Meanwhile, employers are increasingly seeking candidates who already have experience.

Reflection 6: Mentors Make Differences

In the early 2010s, I got a surprising full-time job with the US Marine Corps. They put me in charge of the Russian part of their cultural program. I wasn't the usual candidate -- I had never taught the subject I was hired to teach, and I hadn't even studied it before my first day on this job. Maybe my active professional profile and, surely, my network helped me stand out.

It was a role that would show me how much of a difference mentors can make. I got to connect with top experts in the field. I'd reach out to people who wrote textbooks, created language apps, and other big names in language learning.

The job was awesome because I had the freedom to try new ideas. We had great resources and not many rules, so we could use cool tech and different ways of teaching.

At first, we taught Russian using college textbooks and conversation practice. But when our first group of students took their special assessment called Defense Language Proficiency Test, we realized we needed to change things up. The test was focused on military, not just the stuff you find in conventional textbooks.

This challenge led me to an amazing mentor. I teamed up with Professor Soboleva from the Defense Language Institute, a special language school in California. She agreed to try something different and became my mentor. She'd visit my classroom to see how things were going and guide our new teaching approach.

Mentors really do make a difference. With Professor Soboleva's help, we quickly came up with a new way of teaching Russian for the learners' specific purpose. As a result, our students matched the listening scores of students from that top language school. In a big part, this success was because of the guidance and support from my mentor.

The project only lasted a year because of money issues. Later, I did receive a promising offer from Professor Soboleva to teach at her institute in California. However, the low salary combined with the high cost of living in the area made it less attractive.

Nevertheless, even though the project was short, it had a big impact. It boosted my confidence for future projects and showed me how important mentors are for growing in our careers and coming up with new ideas.

Reflection 7: Tough, But Vital Networks

Before joining the Marines full-time, a colleague at my community college in New York suggested I consider teaching in public schools. He had experience running a school district.

I researched two school districts: one in my home area and another where the college was located. Their websites indicated I could teach math or physical science. When I asked my colleague for advice on which job to pursue, he recommended science, explaining, "There are more math jobs, but, for us, it's always been harder to find science teachers."

I then inquired about the hiring process. In my home district, the HR department handled the bulk of hiring, with the school principals just making the final decisions. In the college's district, school principals managed the hiring, with HR handling the paperwork.

This insider information wasn't available on the official websites, highlighting the importance of knowing people who understand the inner workings of the system.

Going further, my network was key in helping me get a job with the US Marine Corps. A professional contact let the hiring manager know that I was both able to do the job and available.

After my time with the Marines, I had to choose what new job to pursue. By that time, I already moved to Virginia. School teaching didn't pay well there, so keep teaching languages or switch to IT? To help decide, I asked people working in both fields.

For language teaching, I consulted a hiring manager at a major company. Their candid response was revealing: "There aren't many jobs, but a lot of people want them. Most of these applicants have better degrees and more experience than you do. Even if you did well in your first job, it's hard for me to hire you. As a bureaucrat, I don't want to be blamed if anything goes wrong."

Getting meaningful info about IT jobs was harder. Many people only knew about small parts of the field. I saw that IT jobs were changing fast and had more options than language teaching. I also noticed that people who find IT workers for companies seemed to get tired of their jobs faster than in other fields.

Still, I got a lot of useless advice. Many people were happy to listen and give basic suggestions without really understanding my situation.

Reflection 8: Practice as a Career Tool

By the mid-2010s, I had accumulated extensive experience as an instructor. To take my teaching career to the next level, I chose to specialize in IT training.

I started a meetup community called 'Hands-On Training,' which organized free IT workshops on related topics. To find workshop facilitators in Northern Virginia, I partnered with a local non-profit group called CNM. To differentiate ourselves from the mainland branch of CNM, we later began referring to our team as 'CNMCyber'.

People often say that working together on real projects shows who works well as a team. This idea came to life when two hiring managers asked me to host hands-on training for SharePoint administrators through my meetup community. They needed more qualified admins and were willing to train people on the job but wanted to find out who they'd work well with.

My experience developing apprenticeships in Belarus and workshops in Virginia was very helpful when I started recruiting and training for a venture that invested in startups. Startups need staff who can handle many different tasks. Interviews help find good candidates, but seeing how they actually perform is what really matters.

My recruitment plan started with 1,000 candidates. Through a step-by-step process, this number went down to 100 who began training, 10 who moved on to work trials, and finally one person who got hired.

I realized something important: while I needed a specific type of candidate and had to reach out to many people, it wasn't just about finding "gold nuggets" among grains of sand. Each candidate had potential value, if not for my startup clients, then definitely for other opportunities.

Hands-on experience clarifies career preferences. However, I faced limitations in delivering comprehensive assessment results, and candidates weren't actively seeking my career assessments. This revealed a gap between the wealth of talent discovered and the ability to effectively channel it to fitting opportunities.

Reflection 9: Experience is the King

For most of my life, over 35 years, I have either hired myself or helped other companies find suitable candidates for their vacancies.

The hiring process involves several stages. To narrow down the pool of candidates, front-line recruiters typically focus on standard documents like diplomas and certificates, especially when the vacant position requires them. When choosing a candidate, hiring managers consider three main factors:

1. Can the candidate perform the job well?
2. Will they integrate well with the company's culture and team?
3. Are they satisfied with the salary and benefits offered?

Experience doesn't guarantee a good fit with company culture or satisfaction with compensation. However, it is the top credential for assessing whether a candidate can perform the job effectively. If someone has successfully done a similar job in the past, they're more likely to excel in a new position.

That's why many job listings say things like "Experience can replace education requirements." In the real world, hands-on experience often matters more than classroom learning. One could even argue that if education costs money, real-world experience should be worth even more.

This focus on experience is one reason why it is often tough for new graduates to get their first job. While school is important, classroom learning alone lacks the practical experience employers seek.

I'd like to support this point with another personal story. Early in my time as an immigrant, one of my college professors was instrumental in helping me navigate new environments. However, when I needed a job recommendation, she couldn’t provide one because we hadn't worked together directly. The best she could offer was that I was a good student, which wasn't very helpful for someone in their 40s seeking a professional job.

College degrees may open doors, but it's experience that helps us walk through them confidently. An interesting point to note is that if a job recruiter mentions that experience isn't very important, it might be worth asking about their own education. In my experience, it's uncommon to find a recruiter with a degree specifically in recruiting. If such a recruiter does exist, it may be insightful to learn whether their degree alone helped them secure their position. If they indicate that it did, they might be focused on hiring students for a college.

Reflection 10: Experience as a Craft

Careers often take unexpected turns, and trying different things can lead to surprising opportunities. For example, I know someone with a performing arts degree who started a recruiting business. Even though the business didn't succeed, it helped them land a job in corporate recruiting. I've also gained a lot by exploring various types of work.

Doing projects, internships, apprenticeships, starting a business, and freelancing often give us more freedom than regular jobs and can work well alongside traditional jobs.

These different roles help us build important skills and expand our network. They might not offer all the benefits of a full-time job, but they are often easier to get into. A typical path from no experience to a paid job might be: volunteering, gaining credentials, moving to part-time or entry-level work, and finally getting a full-time job.

However, reaching the "final" stage of full-time employment is rarely the end goal. These unconventional experiences can prepare individuals for future opportunities they might not even anticipate.

Volunteering is usually the most flexible way to build credentials. It can be used for career growth by making connections, earning credentials, or learning new skills -- not just to help out.

I learned this the hard way. I volunteered at my community college's tutoring center, hoping to get job recommendations later. It turns out the college didn't allow staff to give recommendations. The experience was still useful, but knowing this policy beforehand could have saved me time. I would have volunteered for six months instead of eighteen.

In contrast, my long-term unpaid work with 'CNM' has matched my career goals perfectly. Over more than ten years of my engagement with this volunteer group, I've noticed two main approaches to non-traditional work:

1. Immersive: Typically involves full-time volunteering to quickly meet a specific need, often using personal savings or financial support. It requires a financial runway long enough to sustain one through the immersion.
2. Incremental: Involves part-time or sporadic arrangements to gradually build credentials while maintaining other commitments, such as a full-time job.

Sometimes, I consider this hypothetical scenario: What if I had worked part-time as an engineering assistant or volunteered with a society of mechanical engineers while attending university? I would have graduated with a professional network, a better understanding of the industry, and a couple of years of experience.

Reflection 11: The Scarcity of Time

Many people follow a familiar trajectory: they go to school, get qualifications, find an entry-level job, start paying bills, get one or two promotions, and settle into life's routine. They start families, take out loans, buy property, and often feel stuck. Better or higher-paying jobs are available, but their routine leaves little room for career advancement. Balancing education and career is especially hard for those with family responsibilities and limited time for growth.

The existing career preparation system fails many people, and I have observed this problem firsthand countless times. Moreover, some of my colleagues -- talented individuals -- were counting down the days to retirement, even if it was years away. They wished for time to pass faster due to dissatisfaction with spending most of their waking hours at a job they didn't love.

Changing careers often requires significant time and financial resources. While money can be obtained through sponsors, grants, or government support, additional time cannot be acquired. Time is the scarcest resource.

In my experience hiring for startups, I reviewed a thousand applications to hire just one individual. The primary challenge was not finding skilled candidates but identifying those who could dedicate time to practice-based training.

Most adults have families to support and require a stable income. Taking risks on startups or investing time in learning new skills is a luxury many cannot afford.

Money can be a strong motivator for success. Having pursued two graduate degrees – one funded by the government and one self-financed – it is evident that personal financial investment increases seriousness. At CNMCyber, we always request some contribution from participants. It is not about the money; it is about the commitment. However, commitments demand time.

Onboarding training at CNMCyber is relatively brief, spanning months rather than the years traditional degrees require. Nonetheless, even a few months without income is too much for many adults. It is a paradox: new skills are necessary for advancement, but there is no time to acquire them.

Reflection 12: Career as an Enterprise

A career is like a journey, full of ups, downs, and unexpected turns. Bad fire departments simply wait for fires; good ones prepare for them. Similarly, our careers can be more than just finding a job when needed; they can be about actively managing and growing our professional paths.

As both a seasoned business professor and a successful entrepreneur, I've observed that treating a career as a personal enterprise can mirror managing a business. Among the many comparisons, two stand out to me.

Firstly, one's ability to land various jobs makes up their career portfolio. This involves building strong credentials, acquiring new skills, maintaining reliable abilities, and possibly letting go of less productive activities.

Just as businesses offer multiple products for sale, having two or more jobs is a feasible option. 'Bread' jobs provide financial stability, while 'butter' jobs are driven by passion and bring satisfaction.

Let's imagine how work-like practice can help me. With strong skills in training, securing a job in that field is achievable for me. I used to teach IT and business, but they no longer excite me. As AI becomes increasingly important, I could gain experience by volunteering on an AI project or starting a small AI training business. This approach would combine my existing skills (the 'bread') with an innovative field that interests me (the 'butter').

As another example, my interest in vocational discovery might lead me to work at a public school and offer an after-school program like WiseNxt. In this case, my "bread" job would also be a key to my "butter" job.

Secondly, a successful career requires many skills: planning your path, building up your qualifications, understanding job markets, providing good service, and handling marketing, sales, and financial matters. It's like being a jack-of-all-trades in the work world – part job expert, part career guide, part office manager, and part networking pro.

Even this very comparison of careers to businesses requires the listener – you – to understand both career management and business concepts simultaneously. However, this is not always the case. Similarly, not every business owner is familiar with every aspect of their enterprise.

That is why entrepreneurs often hire experts to help them. In the same way, getting outside advice and other assistance can really boost our careers. If companies split up tasks to work better, why shouldn't those on the job market do the same? If rightly managed, it shall save time and money.

Career is Agile, Not Waterfall

Let's move from problems to solutions. As an educator, recruiter, hiring manager, and corporate trainer, I’ve had the opportunity to see all phases of the transition from school to work from the inside. Understanding the areas where career preparation can be improved inspired me to create services and resources that I wish I had when I started my journey -- first in Belarus and then in the United States.

I began with examining career development through the lens of business project management. Traditionally, many people have viewed their careers in a way that mirrors the Waterfall approach, but I questioned whether this view is correct.

The term 'Waterfall' describes a step-by-step process. In this model, progress moves in one direction, from start to finish, like water flowing down steps. Once a step is done, it is hard and expensive to go back. The Waterfall model’s predictability allows for detailed planning, making it popular in industries like construction, where projects start with a clear plan.

Similarly, people often dream of a specific career and use higher education as a foundation to achieve that goal. However, only a few can accurately predict their future and are faced with the choice of either going with the flow or trying to turn the river back.

Life does not flow in a single direction, so career projects are best approached using Agile methodologies. Agile methodologies, initially created for software projects, can be effectively applied to career development. These methodologies emphasize continuous adjustments: actions are taken, results are evaluated, and modifications are made accordingly.

To apply Agile effectively in career management, education, mentorship, and practical experience should be combined from the start, not spread out over years.

• Studying without practice is like learning a language without ever using it or trying to learn to ride a bike without ever getting on one.
• Working without structured learning takes longer to see results. Kids learn to say their first words without textbooks, but it takes them a few months.
• Career advice should be ongoing and based on real work experience.

Time is crucial in career development. Younger individuals generally have more free time, but the current system often delays hands-on practice, weakening the connection between education and real-world application.

By adopting an Agile model, career development becomes a dynamic and adaptable process, better suited to the uncertainties of the professional world.

Fellowship for Career Prep

In the late 2010s, I worked on the WorldOpp project, which helped entrepreneurs in underserved areas with education, mentorship, and business funding. When financial priorities changed, the funding -- the most expensive part -- was cut, leading to the idea for Educaship.

Educaship aims to enhance career preparation by blending formal education, career support, and practical experience. Therefore, it is planned to have three main pillars:

1. Education: The 'edu-' prefix represents formal training. Educaship doesn’t aim to replace existing educational systems but to complement them. Collaborations with established institutions will enhance curricula through real-world projects, internships, and apprenticeships. Targeted training modules will prepare participants for hands-on experiences, with additional support for those seeking deeper knowledge.
2. Career Support: The '-ca-' infix stands for career development. Educaship connects participants with mentors and administrative support efficiently. At CNMCyber, we've built a network of skilled professionals, including retirees and career changers. This network is now moving online to cnmcyber.com, offering mentorship to anyone, anywhere. We are also incorporating AI-powered tools to assist with career management and professional networking.
3. Entry-Level Work: The '-ship' suffix highlights the focus on internship, residency, or similar practical work experience. Opplet, a developing technology platform, will provide a digital workplace environment with various applications and tools. While not a perfect replica of professional settings, Opplet will enable participants to engage in realistic professional scenarios, equipping them with hands-on experience in modern technologies and greater control over their career preparation.

We anticipate that establishing the full scope of Educaship will take 3 to 7 years. The biggest challenges will likely be finding mentors and working with colleges. These institutions, with their complex processes, aren't usually seen as leaders of change.

WiseNxt for Career Discovery

As we developed the Educaship fellowship, we realized we could start with something simpler and quicker: WiseNxt. This program is designed to help students make informed career choices and prepare them for success before they enter college, vocational education, or our Educaship fellowship.

WiseNxt offers more than just traditional career services:

• Insights into over a hundred careers, helping students make better choices and giving useful information to career consultants and mentors.
• Practical projects and real-world challenges that add to classroom learning.
• Work experience that employers value, giving students an advantage in the job market.

WiseNxt is a platform where students can explore the workplace. Often, young people are pressured to choose careers without a "fitting room." Experiencing different jobs firsthand is the best way to learn about them. Early exposure to various roles -- through projects, gap years, part-time jobs, or volunteer work -- helps people find the right fit.

The cost of higher education or job training is high, including tuition and the time and support needed from parents or others. Yet, career exploration often gets less attention and resources than buying a car. People don’t buy cars based only on movies or sales pitches, so why invest in expensive career preparation without a "test drive"?

Practical experiences help people understand what type of work fits their abilities and passions. Yet, the process of career exploration -- finding one’s interests, skills, strengths, and potential career paths -- is often overlooked by current systems. In the end, developing WiseNxt will improve our chances of finding partners to help create the full Educaship program.

KenyaX as a Practice Place

We first planned to launch WiseNxt in Ukraine, but now we're starting it in Kenya through the "KenyaX" program, which will begin soon. KenyaX will help students explore different careers early in their education.

KenyaX has two levels of hands-on practice:

• First Level: Participants will start with practical experience in areas like product analysis, website development, event planning, and cloud operations. These are not permanent jobs and will change over time, especially as AI technology grows. We call these roles "pre-entry-level" because they help participants understand basic job tasks.
• Second Level: Participants will move up to entry-level roles, working with professionals like developers, operators, analysts, and marketers. They’ll use their new skills to manage contracts and support KenyaX projects.

Participants will learn about jobs from both sides—what workers do and what employers need. This experience can help them choose the right career and give mentors the information they need to guide them better.

The contract management experience will also include helping with recruitment, so participants can learn about the hiring process.

Those working on commercial projects will earn small wages. Some nonprofit projects with CNMCyber will also get funding.

We'll support the program with basic training, help from our team, and workspaces at Opplet. We know that first jobs can be stressful, so our goal is to create a supportive and stress-free environment.

Early exposure to different careers has big benefits. It helps students understand industries, build professional networks, and make better career choices. This program aims to help participants grow professionally and choose their careers more wisely.

EmployableU for Career Ed

Why don’t high schools teach us how to get jobs and manage our careers? Why is understanding how to make money not considered as important as math or science?

At CNMCyber, we recognized those gaps in education when we found ourselves having to teach basic career awareness, which took valuable time away from developing tech skills. Many participants misunderstood key career concepts. For instance, they didn't realize that working without pay, when managed strategically, could lead to better-paying opportunities later on.

In December 2019, I came to the United States from China, planning to return by February 2020. But the COVID-19 pandemic changed everything, and I ended up staying longer than expected. This situation pushed me to start a project I had been thinking about for a while: a course on job market navigation and career management.

Using my previous experience from the WorldOpp project, I developed "EmployableU Concepts." This course includes modules on employment, recruitment, career exploration, job marketing, networking, and entrepreneurship, all designed to help people succeed in today's job market.

The EmployableU course is currently a prototype that has been tested by a limited number of participants from Kenya and Pakistan. This course aims to:

1. Prepare students for WiseNxt or any future work-like practice programs.
2. Provide career education to our partner high schools.
3. Establish WiseNxt and other Educaship products on the career solutions market.

Our top priority is making career education accessible. To do this, EmployableU will be offered for free, ensuring that essential career knowledge reaches as many people as possible.

If my parents had known more about career options, they could have guided me better. Similarly, if I had been taught about different career paths, I could have saved time and money. If colleges claim their education is key to job success, then learning how to navigate a career is just as important for landing that very job.

The Pipeline vs Careerprise

Let's bring it all together. At our core, we're committed to more than just preparing people for jobs -- we're dedicated to facilitating their long-term career success and professional fulfillment. Career discovery, preparation, and support are multifaceted challenges that require equally sophisticated solutions.

The complete vision of Educaship is embodied in a comprehensive 5-step process that we at CNMCyber refer to as the pipeline:

1. EmployableU Concepts: A course covering essential topics like employment, recruitment, career planning, and job search strategies, ensuring participants know what to focus on as they progress through the pipeline.
2. Orientation: A brief introductory course to help participants determine if Educaship aligns with their goals.
3. WiseNxt: Hands-on experience in various roles to introduce participants to the workplace and assist them in choosing a career specialty.
4. Fellowship: An apprenticeship phase where participants receive mentorship and attend college while gaining practical experience.
5. Continuous Support: Ongoing guidance and on-demand training as participants engage in meaningful work and plan their next career steps.

CNMCyber volunteers manage the first three phases of the pipeline, which will always be free of charge. We are committed to making the final two stages free for our volunteers as well. As we seek partners, this will be a key requirement.

While volunteers are the backbone of our service, financial resources are still needed to cover organizational, technological, and internet service costs. For this reason, some aspects of Educaship will also be available commercially under the brand name "Careerprise," a blend of "career" and "enterprise."

Join the Career Revolution

In closing, I want to reiterate what I mentioned at the start. My purpose today isn't to promote any specific product we're developing. These projects are still evolving, and their names and features may change. Instead, I'm here to focus on the challenges that Educaship aims to address and to share how its underlying concepts have developed over time.

Our approach to work-like practice is revolutionary because it goes beyond simply complementing standardized curricula or mimicking job scenarios. We are building a comprehensive ecosystem where:

• Learners explore diverse roles to discover their vocations and strengths, empowering them to confidently answer the question, 'What do you want to do when you grow up?'
• We collaborate with educational institutions to facilitate internships and apprenticeships for our fellows, providing them with formal training.
• Our fellows enter the workforce equipped with formal education, practical experience, and a wealth of career opportunities.
• Once in the workforce, our graduates continue to receive support through mentorship and career resources.

Over a decade ago, I started developing these career concepts and practical solutions for my own children. However, I believe these ideas and resources have the potential to benefit many others, including you and your loved ones.

I'm deeply committed to bringing this vision to life and would gladly dedicate my life to its success. I invite you to join this transformation -- as a participant, parent, supporter, or advocate. Will you help us revolutionize education and career development?

Finally, if you have better ideas for advancing work-like practice or improving career preparation, I would be happy to support your initiatives.