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ISEEK Glossary
Some terms often used by employers, educators, and workforce professionals are not always understood by the general public. Knowing what these words and abbreviations mean can make education and career exploration easier.
This list is of words and abbreviations for definitions used on ISEEK and common to other education and career exploration materials.
Featured Search Results
Career
A person's consecutive, often progressive achievement or experience in professional or business life that expresses commitment to a career cluster or pathway. It includes education, training, past jobs, community involvement, and hobbies that demonstrate self-development.
Career Clusters
Groupings of occupations needing the same knowledge and skills. Each of the 16 career clusters can include hundreds of different careers.
High-demand Occupations, Industries, or Skills
Occupations, industries, or skills sets identified by employers and economists as being more employable than others. Criteria can be based on a combination of growth rate, total job openings, pay, local and global economic trends, and workplace trends. State data is derived from Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development's occupations in demand.
Industry
A specific type of business, or branch of a particular field, that employs personnel and uses and generates capital. Often named after its principal product or service.
Job
A paid position with specific duties and responsibilities at a particular organization.
A | B | C | D | E | F | G | H | I | J | K | L | M | N | O | P | Q | R | S | T | U | V | W | X | Y | Z
A
Accreditation
An official, voluntary, approval for schools by a non-government agency that reviews educational institutions in a region or career pathway. To become accredited, an institution or program must demonstrate that its curriculum meet standards established by the accrediting agency.
Adult Basic Education
Public programs serving learners age 16 or older to improve basic skills, including math, reading, language, and work-readiness skills.
Apprenticeship
An employer's formal training program combining on-the-job learning with technical instruction for a specific trade. A program consists of a minimum of 144 hours of annual instruction and one to five years of on-the-job training, depending on the complexity of the skills needed. The Minnesota Department of Labor and Industry's Apprenticeship Unit registers state apprenticeship programs for employers.
Assessment
Tests or career decision-making tools used to identify skills, abilities, and interests in order to make education or career decisions. Employers can use assessments for pre-employment testing to maximize chances for getting the right fit between jobs and employees. Educators use different types of assessments to analyze students' knowledge or progression in a program.
Associate Degree
A degree granted by technical, community, and some private career colleges that typically requires at least two years of study (60+ hours) beyond high school.
B
Bachelor's Degree
An academic award that usually requires four years (120 hours) beyond high school at an accredited college or university.
Blue Collar
Reference to a type of job that requires workers to wear work clothes or protective clothing, usually manual labor positions that earn an hourly wage. See also White Collar.
Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS)
A division of the U.S. Department of Labor that is the main fact-finding agency for the federal government in the broad field of labor economics and statistics. State information is gathered by the Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development.
C
Career
A person's consecutive, often progressive achievement or experience in professional or business life that expresses commitment to a career cluster or pathway. It includes education, training, past jobs, community involvement, and hobbies that demonstrate self-development.
Career Branding
The marketing technique of using one's resume, portfolio, networking activities, and other forms of communication to highlight one's professional reputation, skills, attitude, and goals related to a chosen career pathway in the hopes of being viewed favorably by employers and business contacts. Sometimes called personal branding.
Career Clusters
Groupings of occupations needing the same knowledge and skills. Each of the 16 career clusters can include hundreds of different careers.
Career Coach
A person who acts as a supporter, advocate, mentor, and advisor on issues related to job search or career management. Can be a certified or licensed professional or a person with no formal training. Also know as career consultant, career adviser, work-life coach, or personal career trainer.
Career Counselor
A licensed professional who provides formal job search or career management assistance to groups and individuals. Services often include assessing a client's career interests, aptitudes, and goals; providing occupation research; resume and job interview assistance; education and job training guidance; and assistance in applying for jobs and communicating with employers. Can work in private practice or be employed by a school, company, or community organization.
Career Development
Broad term referring to the ongoing process of exploring, choosing, and acting on educational, occupational, and other options related to one's work life.
Career Fields
Six broad groupings of occupations that can be subdivided into 16 career clusters and numerous career pathways.
Career Ladder or Career Lattice
A series of related jobs with progressively more responsibility and prestige. Career ladders display only vertical movement between jobs. Career lattices contain both vertical and lateral movement between jobs, more closely reflecting today's career paths. Employers can create career ladders/lattices to show job progression within a specific company or industry. However, workers sometimes move up their career ladder/lattices by obtaining a higher position at a different company.
Career Management
Decisions and actions taken to maintain or increase one's employability or job satisfaction. Can include proactive choices to seek employment, promotions, special projects, or training to increase one's salary or prestige, or changing one's career goals. Also includes decisions and reactions to unforeseen transitions, such as a layoff, company restructuring, or an unsolicited job offer. Implies an individual, not one's employer, is aware and has control of one's career development.
Career Pathways
A small group of occupations within a career cluster requiring its own knowledge and skill requirements. Occupations are related and allow for lateral and progressive movement.
CareerOneStop
A U.S. Department of Labor-sponsored website with national career resources and workforce information for job seekers, students, businesses, and workforce professionals.
Carl D. Perkins Vocational and Technical Education Act Amendments of 1998
See Perkins
Certificate
An educational institution's acknowledgement of a student's satisfactory completion of an organized program of study at the postsecondary level.
Certification
See Occupational Certification
College
A postsecondary educational institution that offers undergraduate programs, but usually no graduate degree programs.
College Entrance Exam
A standardized test often required by four-year colleges to help determine which students to admit into the school. The most common tests are the ACT and SAT.
Community College
A public, government-supported college that offers one- or two-year degree programs to prepare for a specific career. Attendance can also provide the first two years of a four-year college or university education.
Community Education
A program that provides educational, recreational, cultural, health, or community courses and events. Most courses are taken for personal development and do not offer credit that can be applied to a degree or certifying program.
Competency
Processing knowledge of, ability to use, or necessary skills related to a career pathway.
Corporate Culture
The official and unofficial beliefs, expectations, and values that affect the work environment and the way a company conducts its business. Behaviors and attitudes accepted and expected of most employees within a department or whole organization.
Course
One of a series of lessons or class meetings as part of an education program.
Credentials
Evidence of one's education, training or knowledge, including degrees, licensing, occupational certification, and accreditation information.
Curricula Vitae (CV)
A detailed statement of professional qualifications that is used instead of a resume when seeking employment in higher education, science, or medical arenas in the United States, or when job seeking in foreign countries. A longer, more detailed document than a resume that can include earned degrees, teaching and research experience, publications, presentations, and other activities related to a career pathway.
D
DEED
See Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development.
Degree
A title awarded to students by a college, university, or professional school on completion of a program of study.
Dislocated Worker
A worker who has recently been or is about to be laid off from a job.
Distance Learning
Methods of teaching that are alternatives to traditional in-person classroom education involving the physical separation of teacher and students. Examples include online courses, recorded or live television broadcasts, audio recordings, and mail correspondence.
Doctoral Degree
The highest level of graduate study, requiring at least three years beyond a bachelor's degree (sometimes four to six years) at an accredited university. The most common doctorate is the Ph.D.
DLI or DOLI
See Minnesota Department of Labor and Industry
DOL
See U.S. Department of Labor
Downsizing
A company's reduction of production, business operations, and financial expenditures. Often includes the reduction of payroll expenses through employee layoffs.
E
Elevator Speech
A one-minute or less statement used by job seekers to describe skills, experience, education, and preferred career pathway. Statement is used as part of a job seeker's career branding. Can be used in various career and job search situations, including job interviews, career fairs, and networking events.
Employability
The skills, attitudes, and personality traits needed to increase a job seeker's chances of being positively perceived by employers. Includes basic skills, such as reading comprehension and basic math skills; soft skills; technical skills; and workplace competencies needed to relate to and communicate with customers and coworkers.
ETA or DOL-ETA
See U.S Department of Labor Employment and Training Administration
F
Financial Aid
Money from an outside source to help pay for education in addition to the contribution of the student and family.
Financial Aid Package
An estimate from a school of the total amount of financial aid a student is to receive. It can include grants, scholarships, work study, and loans from a various sources.
Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA)
A form used to apply for and determine federal, state, and private financial aid. It is the only form used to apply for the Minnesota State Grant and, at most postsecondary institutions, for institutional funds.
G
General Education Development (GED)
A diploma awarded to individuals who pass the five-test battery that measures the academic competencies generally required of a Minnesota high school graduate. An alternative to a high school diploma for those who did not complete the standard high school curriculum.
Graduate Program
Postsecondary studies beyond the bachelor's degree. Includes master's and doctoral programs. Students enrolled in graduate programs are called graduate students.
Green
Pop culture term referring to anything environmentally friendly or that supports the conservation of Earth's natural resources. Includes any occupation that produces a product or uses processes which benefits or causes the least amount of negative impact on the environment.
Green Collar
Occupations that produce a product or use processes which benefit or cause the least amount of negative impact on the environment. Includes career pathways related to renewable energy and energy efficiency. Can be either blue-collar or white-collar jobs.
H
Headhunter
Pop culture term for recruiters, employment agencies, or executive search firms that companies pay to find qualified job candidates for specific positions. Often specialize in an industry or geographic region.
Hidden Job Market
Job openings not publicized to the general public. Positions are discovered and applied for through networking, informational interviews, or other ways of communication that do not include responding to official job postings.
High-demand Occupations, Industries, or Skills
Occupations, industries, or skills sets identified by employers and economists as being more employable than others. Criteria can be based on a combination of growth rate, total job openings, pay, local and global economic trends, and workplace trends. State data is derived from Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development's occupations in demand.
High-growth Occupations or Industries
Occupations or industries projected to have more total openings than the average occupation, and represent at least 0.1% of total employment in the base year. State data is derived from Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development's employment projections (2006-2016).
High-pay Occupations or Industries
Occupations or industries that represent at least 0.1% of total employment in the base year and have an annual median salary which is higher than the average for the current year. State data is derived from Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development's employment projections (2006-2016).
I
In-demand
See High-demand Occupations, Industries or Skills
Industry
A specific type of business, or branch of a particular field, that employs personnel and uses and generates capital. Often named after its principal product or service.
Informational Interview
A conversation between a job seeker and a potential employer or networking contact for the sole purpose of increasing the job seeker's knowledge about a company, industry, career pathway, or specific position.
Internship
A short-term experience where an individual works under supervision in a workplace to gain practical skills and experience in a career pathway and to increase work-readiness skills. A common type of work-based learning for high school 11th and 12th grade students and college students. Can be either paid or unpaid. Might offer school credit.
iSeek Solutions
A multi-agency consortium in Minnesota composed of government agencies, non-profit organizations, and private industry to promote education, career, and workforce development initiatives. Its executive board is comprised of representatives from the Minnesota Department of Education, Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development, Minnesota Office of Enterprise Technology, Minnesota Office of Higher Education, Minnesota State Colleges and Universities, and the University of Minnesota. The consortium supports ISEEK, MCIS, MnCareers, and other college and career exploration projects and initiatives.
J
Job
A paid position with specific duties and responsibilities at a particular organization.
Job Coach
See Career Coach
Job Shadowing
A type of work-based learning where a student observes the daily routine of an employee at a worksite. The student is expected to gain information about the employee's education, job training, and experience as well as information about the industry and similar occupations. Can last a few hours or several days.
K
Knowledge and Foundation Skills
Basic or a core set of skills needed to be ready for work and college referred to in the career pathway framework.
L
Layoff
Temporary or permanent termination of one or more employees, usually part of a company's efforts to reduce costs, production, or end operations. Employees are sometimes called dislocated workers and are often eligible for unemployment and other benefits.
Licensure
Regulations and permission granted by a competent authority to engage in a business or specific types of occupations, many dealing with public health and safety. The most restrictive form of professional and occupational regulation, overseen by the states or federal government. Licensure requirements vary by state. If a license to participate in a certain occupation is required by the state, unlicensed practice of an occupation is a criminal offense.
Lifelong Learning
The act of gaining knowledge and skills through both formal and informal education throughout one's life.
M
Master's Degree
Certifies successful completion of graduate education offered by an accredited university. The degree typically requires a bachelor's degree, plus two years of full-time coursework and a completed thesis (an original research project and paper).
Mature Worker
See Older Worker
Mentor
A person with professional or personal experience who counsels and guides a younger or less-experienced person. Can be an informal relationship or part of a formal mentoring program administered by a company, school program, or community group. Mentoring relationship can focus on specific topic or goals, such as personal growth, career development, lifestyle changes, spiritual fulfillment, or other areas mutually agreed-upon areas.
Minnesota Department of Education (MDE)
The state agency that oversees all K-12 schools in Minnesota and other educational programs, including early learning programs, adult basic education, community education, and citizenship programs. Responsible for curriculum standards and performance measures. Administers Minnesota's 339 school districts and oversees all licensed teachers in the state.
Minnesota Career Information System (MCIS)
An Internet career exploration resource requiring a paid license for access. A member of iSeek Solutions and administered by the Minnesota Department of Education, the web resource includes online tools. Includes assessments, e-portfolio, occupation descriptions, and teacher materials.
Minnesota Office of Enterprise Technology (OET)
The state agency that provides oversight, leadership, and direction for information and telecommunications technology policy and the management, delivery, and security of information and telecommunications technology systems and services in Minnesota.
Minnesota State Colleges and University System (MnSCU)
The administrative body for the state's community colleges, technical colleges, and state universities, comprised of 25 two-year colleges and seven state universities. All of the system's two-year community and technical colleges have an open admissions policy, allowing anyone with a high school diploma or GED to enroll. The system does not include the University of Minnesota.
Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development (DEED)
The state's main economic development agency, with programs promoting business recruitment, expansion, and retention; workforce development; international trade; and community development. The agency supports the economic success of individuals, businesses, and communities by improving opportunities for growth. Also serves as the state agent of the U.S. Department of Labor, and administers the Minnesota Workforce Centers, unemployment insurance, and other services.
Minnesota Department of Labor and Industry (DLI)
The state agency that oversees safety, compensation, and other workplace and employment laws, including worker's compensation, child labor regulations, and apprenticeship registration.
Minnesota Office of Higher Education (MOHE)
A cabinet-level state agency providing financial aid programs and information to allow for greater access to postsecondary education. Serves as the state's clearinghouse for data, research, and analysis on postsecondary enrollment, financial aid, finance, and trends. The agency oversees the Minnesota State Grant program, tuition reciprocity programs, a student loan program, Minnesota's 529 college savings program, licensing, and an early awareness outreach initiative for youth.
Minnesota WorkForce Centers
Comprehensive one-stop centers providing a variety of free and low-cost employment and benefit services to job seekers and local businesses. Services can include career counseling, job training and education information, job search assistance, job matching, and employer recruiting events. Administered statewide by the Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development; in other states the centers are known as One-Stop Career Centers.
N
Networking
The exchange of information or resources to cultivate productive relationships for employment or business activities.
Non-traditional Career
An occupation or pathway that is not commonly pursued by an ethnic or gender group. Often refers to occupations in which less than 25 percent of the workforce is of one gender.
O
Occupational Information Network (O*NET)
A U.S. Department of Labor-sponsored web-based resource for comprehensive information on job requirements and worker competencies. The nation's primary source of occupational information. It replaced the Dictionary of Occupational Titles.
Older Worker
Job seeker whose age is seen as a challenge to finding employment. Exact age group varies by the program or initiative geared toward assisting the group with job searching and encouraging employers to hire them.
Occupation
A set of pre-determined work activities, skills, knowledge, and other criteria that is performed for pay or profit on an ongoing basis, as classified by the Standard Occupational Classification System (SOC).
Occupational Certification
A pre-determined standard that verifies a worker's expertise within an occupation and allows the worker to perform job duties using a specific occupation title ("right to title"). Non-certified individuals may perform the same duties, but may not use the title.
Occupational Cluster
A group of occupations from one or more industries that share common skill requirements. See also Career Cluster.
On-the-job Training
Hands-on-instruction given to new employees to learn the basic duties of an occupation. Implies that little or no formal technical training is required of applicants.
Open Enrollment
Educational programs or courses that allow students to register or start classes at any time throughout the year instead of all students starting a new term on the same date.
Outsourcing
Act of a business or organization contracting with an outside supplier for goods or services. Often referred to when a company uses outside contractors for all or part of its operations, limiting its need to hire employees directly.
Off-shoring
Act of a business or organization contracting with a supplier from another country for good or services. Often referred to when a U.S. company's moves all of part of its operations overseas, limiting its need to hire U.S. employees.
P
Performance Measure
A description of how attainment of a learning objective will be measured. Examples include standardized tests, surveys, and assessments.
Performance Standards
The minimum acceptable level of achievement for each learning objective.
Personal Branding
See Career Branding
Perkins
Governing legislation for the nation's vocational and technical education programs which provides funding for high school, postsecondary, and adult career exploration and job training initiatives.
Portfolio or Career Portfolio
A selection of a person' work compiled over a period of time. Used to demonstrate overall performance or progress in a particular area. Can be a display of professional or student work showcasing creative, education, career, and personal achievements. Can be electronic or a hard copy.
Portfolio Career
A situation where an individual chooses to work a combination of jobs within a career pathway for multiple employers instead of one, traditional full-time job, in order to have a flexible schedule or a broader range of experiences. Can include part-time positions, temporary jobs, freelancing, and self-employment.
Postsecondary Education
A formal instructional program which curriculum is designed primarily for students who have earned a high school diploma or the equivalent. Includes two-year colleges and four-year colleges and universities as well as academic, vocational, and continuing professional education programs.
Private Career School
Postsecondary educational institutions that provide short-term programs (three years or less) to prepare for specific careers. Owned, administrated, and primarily supported by a non-governmental agency or company. Can be for-profit or non-profit.
Private College or University
A postsecondary educational institution owned, administrated, and primarily supported by a non-governmental agency or company. Can be for-profit or non-profit. Some are religiously affiliated.
Professional
A person who is employed in a particular profession as a permanent career, or possesses the skills, knowledge and ethical standards of a career pathway. Often refers to career pathways that require formal education, implying a higher status than other pathways. Also refers to an attitude of courteous, conscientious and generally businesslike behavior.
Professional Degree
An academic award requiring two or more years beyond a bachelor's degree at an accredited university that is the minimum requirement for certain occupations. Examples include lawyer and pharmacist.
Professional Development Organization
Association dedicated to the improvement of members' work-related performance. Often offer opportunities to network with other professionals, ways to gain skills, and provide related information.
Programs of Study
High school and postsecondary educational programs developed around a career pathway that helps learners prepare for a career. Curriculum is sequential and based on regional industry expectations and skill standards.
Public or State College or University
A postsecondary educational institution that receives funding mainly from the state government.
Q
R
Recareering
Pop culture term for an individual's deliberate change in career paths. Often referring to older workers who start a new career pathway after retiring from another.
Reciprocity
An agreement that allows students to attend participating public universities and colleges in a neighboring state at reduced tuition prices.
Recruiter
See Headhunter
Replacement Openings
An estimate of the need for new workforce entrants to replace workers who will die, retire, or otherwise permanently leave the occupation. State data is derived from Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development's labor market information.
S
Salary
A fixed amount of financial compensation paid regularly for performing a job, usually determined by the week, month, or annually. Often part of an employee's compensation package, which can include health care benefits, paid time off, and other benefits.
Scholarship
An award to students based on academic achievement or athletic achievement, cultural or religious background, or special skills and talents that is not expected to be repaid.
Skill Standard
The knowledge and competencies required to perform successfully in the workplace.
Soft Skills
Personality traits, aptitudes, and attitudes that direct one's social behaviors in professional settings. Can include interpersonal communications, cultural awareness, appearance and ability to dress appropriately, and manners. Does not refer to the technical skills (or hard skills) which are unique to each career pathway.
Standard Occupational Classification (SOC) System
The U.S. government's system of classifying all occupations, allowing government agencies and private industry to produce comparable data.
State College or University
See Public or State Colleges and Universities
STEM
Reference to the career cluster or skills of Science Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics.
T
Technical College
Colleges that offer employment courses and programs which teach specific knowledge and skills leading to specific jobs. Programs are usually 10-23 months and eligible for credit transfer to a four-year program.
Telecommuting
Employment arrangement allowing employees to do all or part of their work offsite, often at the employee's home. Telephone, Internet, and other technical resources are used for employees to complete work and communicate with employer.
Transferable Skills
Abilities, technical skills, and personal qualities a worker can use in more than one occupation. Can be acquired from past jobs, education, work-based learning, volunteering, hobbies, participating in sports, or other activities.
Transition Assistance Program (TAP)
Two-day workshop to assist veterans dealing with career, education, and employment decisions. Most participants in the workshop are service members who are about to or recently completed military services and are re-entering civilian life.
U
Undergraduate Program
Program that leads to an associate or bachelor's degree, but not to a graduate or professional degree. Students who are freshman, sophomores, juniors, or seniors at a college or university are called undergraduates.
Unemployment Benefits or Compensation
Government supplied compensation provided for a limited time to workers who are unemployed through no fault of their own, such as the result of a layoff or company closing.
Unemployment Rate
The percentage of people eligible and able to work who are unemployed, as measured by the number of people currently receiving unemployment benefits. State data is derived from Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development's labor market information.
University
A postsecondary educational institution that offers both undergraduate and graduate degree programs.
University of Minnesota
A public research institution and the state's largest university. The system has five campuses: Twin Cities, Crookston, Duluth, Morris, and Rochester. The University of Minnesota is not a part of the Minnesota State Colleges and University system.
U.S. Department of Labor (DOL)
A federal government agency that fosters and promotes the welfare of U.S. job seekers, wage earners, and retirees. The agency is responsible for occupational safety, wage and hour standards, unemployment insurance benefits, re-employment services, and some economic statistics. Most states have comparable labor departments that work with and report to the federal agency, including the Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development (DEED)
U.S Department of Labor Employment and Training Administration
A division of U.S. Department of Labor that contributes to the more efficient functioning of the U.S. labor market by providing high-quality job training, employment, labor market information, and income maintenance services, primarily through state and local workforce investment systems.
V
Veterans' Employment and Training Service
A division of the U. S. Department of Labor that provides veterans and transitioning service members with resources and services related to job searching, employment and reemployment rights, and meeting labor-market demands with qualified veterans.
Vocational Rehabilitation Agencies
State offices that work for and with individuals who have disabilities to achieve their employment, independence, and economic goals.
W
Wages
A payment of money for labor or services, usually determined by an hourly, daily, or per-project basis.
White Collar
Reference to a type of job with salaried, professional workers in office settings who typically wear business attire as opposed to the protective clothing of blue collar jobs. See also Blue Collar.
Work Readiness
Refers to the skills, aptitudes, and attitudes employers expect job seekers to have in preparation for the culture and demands of the workplace. Can be obtained through education or job training programs, employer-sponsored events, work-based learning, and other activities that increase transferable skills.
Work Study
On- or off-campus job offered as part of a student's financial aid package. Student is employed by the school. The position is funded by the federal or state government.
Work-based Learning
An educational opportunity that allows students to gain career skills and knowledge through real-life work activities, and connect what they learn in school to workplace expectations and competencies. Examples include internships, job shadowing, work-site visits and informational interviews.
Workforce Investment Act of 1998 (WIA)
Federal statute that transferred governance of job training, adult literacy, and dislocated worker programs to the state and local levels. Programs affected are in the Adult Employment and Training, Disadvantaged Youth Employment and Training, and Dislocated Worker Employment and Training divisions. Participating in WIA programs is often limited to job seekers who fit specific criteria, including age, literacy requirements, or being a dislocated worker. All qualified education and job training providers in Minnesota are listed on ISEEK.
