O*NET Resources ~ A Piece of the Action

American Foundation for the Blind Selects O*NET Data To Help Visually Impaired Expand Employment Horizons

"It is extremely difficult for blind and visually impaired people to learn about the variety of workplace opportunities because they can't see what workers do. We use O*NET information to broaden their understanding of existing careers and open up more possibilities for satisfying employment. ~Dr. Karen Wolffe, American Foundation for the Blind

CareerConnectT is a free employment planning resource for people who are blind or visually impaired. Sponsored by the American Foundation for the Blind (AFB), it helps people learn about the range and diversity of occupations available in the labor market. It also provides mentors and information about assistive technology that can help them do the work. This practical, user-friendly resource incorporates O*NET data to supply essential information for career exploration and to open up a larger universe of jobs for people with visual impairments.

The Need
According to AFB studies, a majority of blind and visually impaired adults of working age want to work. They offer businesses a wide range of talents, skills, and abilities. Yet 55-60 percent (more than one million persons) are unemployed. These prospective workers report that among the obstacles to finding good jobs is a lack of accessible information about opportunities in the labor market and assistive technology to help them do the work.

To address these employment needs, AFB's CareerConnect offers occupational information, encouragement, practical advice, mentors from a variety of jobs, and other resources for blind and visually impaired individuals. The goal is to give them information and tools to make better career decisions and find jobs that fit their interests and needs.

O*NET Role
Getting more and better information on occupations for her clientele was a "huge issue" for Dr. Karen Wolffe. "For years students had been coming to me for career counseling with virtually the same 10 or so job options on their dream list. They were stymied by their lack of understanding about the diversity of jobs in the labor market, and their limited understanding often resulted in very poor decisions. They didn't know about accommodations that would enable them to do jobs that really suited their interests."

The O*NET system had the data Dr. Wolffe needed. She decided to download the database so that she could choose the items that best suited her clients and make the information accessible to them. "Youth, in particular, but also adults, can be overwhelmed by too much information. They need just enough to keep them moving without wearing them out," she says. CareerConnect has incorporated selected O*NET data, making it possible for users to browse by job category, personal interests, or by title or key word. The search results include detailed occupational descriptions, a list of related occupations, and a list of mentors (blind or visually impaired persons working in the occupation), if available. The site also provides practical tips and tools. These help users with self assessment, career exploration, and organization of their time, space, and credentials for an efficient job search.

Results
Among the data items she selected, Dr. Wolffe finds Related Occupations the most beneficial for CareerConnect users. She considers this O*NET feature valuable not only to individuals with visual impairments but also to their parents, counselors, and other professionals working with them.

Thus far, she and her AFB colleagues are pleased with the content and design of CareerConnect and with its first year of operation. In 2003, the service logged almost 3,000 visitors and 100,000 page views. These and other usage statistics suggest that visitors mostly found information that was of interest or benefit. They also stayed long enough (15 minutes, on average) to look beyond the introductory matter. The most popular pages visited were Careers (where O*NET is used), followed by Mentors.

Another sign of CareerConnect's success is the substantial number of visitors who have sent email messages to mentors. The bulk of these inquiries seem to have come directly from youths and adults with visual impairments rather than from helpers or intermediaries.

Although CareerConnect is new, groups looking for useful information for the visually impaired are establishing links to the site. More than 50 key organizations did so in its first year.

Next Steps
In the future, Dr. Wolffe plans to add wage and salary information to the occupational details in CareerConnect. Having O*NET data will simplify this task.

AFB will also continue its outreach to build awareness of the site among potential users across the U.S. In addition, staff members are currently working with the Canadian National Institute for the Blind to expand CNIB's use of CareerConnect. In the not too distant future, CNIB users will be able to link directly to O*NET information via AFB's CareerConnect.

Contact
Dr. Karen Wolffe
American Foundation for the Blind
Telephone: 888-824-2184 or 512-707-0525
Email:careerconnect@afb.net
URL: http://www.afb.org/CareerConnect/