College’s Wizard helps with decisions, planning

Published 10:11 pm Thursday, August 12, 2010

A wealth of information is available through Paul D. Camp Community College’s website, www.pdc.edu. Check it out! You can find the schedules for classes being offered during the fall semester, which begins Aug. 19.

They include a broad array of offerings at the Hobbs Suffolk Campus, the Franklin Campus and the college’s center in Smithfield, as well as offerings available online and through the Division of Workforce Development.

There are links also for Future Students, Current Students, Alumni and Friends, Business and Community, Library Services, Paying for College, along with an Announcements link that features special happenings, success stories, honors and other good news.

Email newsletter signup

On the homepage, too, is a special link to the Virginia Community Colleges’ Wizard online tool, designed to guide prospective students and their families in making informed college and career choices. You will find the Wizard to be an invaluable tool for mapping out a personalized educational track that includes career assessment, college search, calculation of college costs and transfer planning.

As described on the website www.vawizard.org, the Virginia Education Wizard is a one-stop, online resource that brings together real-time information to help students enter the front door to postsecondary education.

Ginny, a life-like guide, walks users through the different features and helps them build their profiles to tailor the information they receive to their particular interests.

The Wizard provides assessments to identify strongest work-related interests and follow up with career-option recommendations that align with users’ interests and work values; it also leverages real-time data to report what current jobs are paying in local Virginia markets, highlighting jobs where workers are in demand.

In addition, the Wizard outlines the community college curriculum, including options at local campuses closest to each user and workforce training opportunities for people seeking to begin or restart a career quickly and dovetails information from public and private four-year institutions to help students take the right courses to qualify for guaranteed transfer agreements to continue their education.

The Wizard also connects users directly to the community colleges’ online application and registration process and guides users through applying for financial aid — and much more.

Fall registration reminder

Registration is under way for fall semester. Make this fall count by choosing from several options: traditional classes or online offerings for educational access at a distance — or workforce training and development classes for upgrading job skills and preparing for a new career.

For registration details or information on particular programs or courses, call 569-6700. Let Paul D. Camp help you “Get Ahead!”