This supplement contains three structured GenAI exercises designed to complement the Career Exploration Deep Dive Lesson Plan. Each exercise maps directly to a segment of the 60-minute lesson and builds on the eight GenAI prompts already embedded in the lesson plan. Exercises are sequenced to move students from self-awareness → market research → action planning.

🛠  Recommended GenAI Tools (free versions of any of these work):

• Claude — claude.ai
• ChatGPT — chatgpt.com
• Microsoft Copilot — copilot.microsoft.com (LaGuardia Students have a license with CUNY’s Microsoft 365)
• Google Gemini — gemini.google.com

1. Self-Assessment Interpreter

Using GenAI to make sense of Focus 2 results and connect them to real careers

Purpose & Faculty Notes

Focus 2 surfaces career suggestions, but students often accept or dismiss them without understanding why a match was made. This exercise uses GenAI to help students interpret their results with curiosity — translating abstract interest/skills data into concrete career meaning. It uses Lesson Plan 2 Prompts 1 and 2, and positions GenAI as an interpretation tool, not a decision-maker.

⏱  Timing:  Run at the end of the Focus 2 segment, approximately minutes 21–25, after students have recorded their top 3 career suggestions.

💡  Faculty Tip:  Before students open GenAI, ask them to write down their honest first reaction to their Focus 2 results (“confirmed,” “surprised,” “confused,” etc.). This gives them a personal anchor to compare against the AI explanation.

📎  Lesson Plan Prompts Used:  Prompt 1 (Clarifying Interests) and Prompt 2 (Making Sense of Assessment Results).

Student Instructions — Step by Step

Before starting: Complete at least two Focus 2 assessments and write down your top 3 career suggestions plus the interest or skill area each one reflects.

1. Open one of the GenAI tools above in a new browser tab.
2. Use Prompt Option A if you want to explore what careers typically match your interests. Use Prompt Option B to understand why Focus 2 specifically suggested the careers it did.

📋  Prompt Option A — Clarifying Interests (Lesson Prompt 1): I am a first-year college student interested in [YOUR INTEREST AREA — e.g., helping people, working with technology, creative problem-solving, etc.].  What types of careers often match this interest, and what skills do people in those careers enjoy using?  Also, which of these careers would be realistic to pursue with a 2-year or 4-year college degree?

📋  Prompt Option B — Making Sense of Assessment Results (Lesson Prompt 2): Focus 2 suggested the following careers for me: [LIST YOUR TOP 3 CAREERS].  My top interest or skills areas from the assessment were: [E.G., investigative, social, artistic, etc.].  Can you explain: 1. Why these careers might fit someone with my interests and strengths? 2. What those careers actually have in common with each other? 3. Which one might be the most realistic entry point for a first-year college student?

1. After reading the response, write a one-sentence answer in your own words: “These careers were suggested because I seem to…”
2. Record your results below:

Student Record: Exercise 1

My Focus 2 top 3 careers
Prompt option I used (A or B)
In my own words: why these careers fit me
One career from the GenAI response I hadn’t considered
Which career feels most realistic to me right now?
Reflection: Did the GenAI explanation change my reaction to my results?

🔗  GenAI Literacy Connection (Module 3 — GenAI Prompting): Notice the difference between Prompt A and Prompt B. Prompt A starts from your interest; Prompt B starts from your results. Both give you useful information, but the framing changes what you get back. This is intentional prompt design — a core skill from Module 3. The follow-up step (writing the answer in your own words) is also critical: the GenAI interpreted your results, but only you can decide whether that interpretation is accurate.

2. Market Reality Decoder

Using GenAI to interpret labor market data and map the education pathway

Purpose & Faculty Notes

Career Coach provides salary and job growth data, but students frequently struggle to interpret what that data means practically — is 6% growth good or bad? What does “bachelor’s degree required” actually mean in terms of time and cost? This exercise uses GenAI to translate raw data into plain-language context and help students map a realistic education pathway. It uses Lesson Plan 2 Prompts 3 and 6, and builds data literacy and academic planning skills.

⏱  Timing:  Run at the end of the Career Coach segment, approximately minutes 36–40, after students have researched salary, job outlook, and education for their chosen career. 💡  Faculty Tip:  Demonstrate Prompt A live using a career most students are unlikely to choose (e.g., Actuary or Orthodontist) so students see the format without copying your example. Encourage them to enter their own real Career Coach numbers. 📎  Lesson Plan Prompts Used:  Prompt 3 (Understanding Job Outlook) and Prompt 6 (Education Pathway Clarity).

Student Instructions — Step by Step

Before starting: Have your Career Coach results in front of you — salary range, job growth percentage, whether growth is faster/slower than average, and required education level.

1. Open one of the GenAI tools above in a new browser tab.
2. Use both prompts below in sequence — start with A, then follow up with B. They work together.

📋  Prompt A — Understanding Job Outlook (Lesson Prompt 3): Explain the job outlook and salary for a [CAREER NAME] in simple terms for a first-year college student.  Here is what I found in Career Coach: – Salary range: $[LOW] to $[HIGH] per year – Job growth rate: [X]% over the next 10 years – Growth is described as: [faster than average / average / slower than average / declining] – Local or regional demand: [what you found, or “I didn’t find local data”]  Please answer: 1. Is this salary range for entry-level workers or experienced ones — and what might I realistically earn starting out? 2. What does that growth percentage actually mean in terms of how many jobs will be available? 3. Is this a career that is growing, stable, or at risk? Why?

📋  Prompt B — Education Pathway Clarity (Lesson Prompt 6): What types of education or training are typically required for a career as a [CAREER NAME]?  Career Coach shows the minimum requirement as: [e.g., bachelor’s degree / associate degree / certificate / high school diploma].  I am currently a first-year student at a community college. Please help me understand: 1. Is the minimum education level enough to get hired, or do most employers expect more? 2. What is a realistic education pathway from where I am now to entering this career? 3. Are there any certifications or licenses I should know about beyond the degree?

1. Answer the Critical Thinking Prompt from the lesson plan in your record sheet below: Is this career growing, stable, or declining — and how does that affect your interest in it?

Student Record: Exercise 2

Career I researched
Salary range (what I found in Career Coach)
What that salary range means for a new graduate
Job growth status: growing / stable / declining
Education pathway from where I am now
Critical Thinking: Does this outlook increase or decrease my interest? Why?

🔗  GenAI Literacy Connection (Module 2 — Ethics): GenAI’s education pathway explanation may reflect assumptions about what a “typical” path looks like — often based on traditional four-year college routes. Consider whether its advice accounts for your actual situation: community college, transfer plans, financial constraints, or family responsibilities. If it doesn’t, that’s an ethical limitation worth noticing — and a good reason to also speak with an academic advisor who knows your specific context.

3. Career Fit & Action Planner

Using GenAI to evaluate lifestyle fit, build skills awareness, and create a concrete action plan

Purpose & Faculty Notes

This exercise synthesizes everything students learned from Focus 2, Career Coach, and Vault into a personal career-fit evaluation and a concrete semester action plan. It uses Lesson Plan 2 Prompts 5, 7, and 8, and bridges directly to both assignment options — the Career Reflection Paper and the Career Action Plan. The AI Reflection component from the lesson plan is also embedded here as a structured closing activity.

⏱  Timing:  Run during the Vault segment and wrap-up, approximately minutes 51–60. Can also be assigned as the out-of-class bridge to either assignment option. 💡  Faculty Tip:  Run the Discussion Option (“Would this career fit your lifestyle and values?”) before students open GenAI. Let students form their own opinion first, then use GenAI to pressure-test it. The GenAI should challenge or affirm what they already think — not replace the thinking. 📎  Lesson Plan Prompts Used:  Prompt 5 (Skill Translation), Prompt 7 (Decision Support), Prompt 8 (Next Step Planning), and the Student AI Reflection.

Student Instructions — Step by Step

Before starting: Have your Vault notes ready — typical work environment, required skills, advancement potential, and any pros/cons you identified. You should also have your Focus 2 and Career Coach findings from earlier in class.

1. Open one of the GenAI tools above in a new browser tab.
2. Use Prompts A and B in order. They build on each other — A evaluates fit, B plans action.

📋  Prompt A — Skills I Need to Build (Lesson Prompt 5): What skills should a college student start building if they want to become a [CAREER NAME]?  From my Vault research, the typical required skills for this career include: [LIST 2–3 SKILLS YOU FOUND].  I am currently a first-year college student. Please tell me: 1. Which of those skills can I start developing this semester — and how? 2. Are there any skills that are increasingly important in this career that the traditional job description might not mention (for example, AI tools, communication, or data skills)? 3. What is one concrete thing I could do before the end of this semester to build relevant experience?

📋  Prompt B — Decision Support + Next Steps (Lesson Prompts 7 & 8): I have been researching a career as a [CAREER NAME] today. Here is a summary of what I found: – Interest/skills fit (Focus 2): [strong match / possible match / surprising result] – Salary range: $[LOW]–$[HIGH], which I feel [is / isn’t] realistic for my goals – Job growth: [growing / stable / declining] – Work environment: [brief description from Vault] – My personal values for a career: [money / stability / helping others / flexibility / creativity — choose what applies]  Please help me with two things: 1. Based on what I know about my interests and goals, what are 2–3 honest questions I should ask myself before committing to this career direction? 2. What are realistic next steps a first-year college student could take this semester to explore this career — including options that don’t require a job or internship yet?

1. From the next steps list, circle the ONE action you will commit to this semester. Write it in your record sheet below.
2. Complete the GenAI Reflection at the bottom of your record sheet. This is required — it is the most important part.

Student Record: Exercise 3

Career I evaluated
One skill I can start building this semester
How I will build that skill (specific action)
The ONE next step I am committing to this semester
Would this career fit my lifestyle and values? (Yes / No / Not sure)
Wrap-Up: Has my career direction changed today? Why or why not?

✍️  GenAI Reflection — Required (from Lesson Plan) Answer both questions below in 2–4 sentences each. Write in your own words — do not copy or paraphrase GenAI. Question 1:  How has using GenAI today changed the way you think about your career options?     Question 2:  What final decision or insight did you come to yourself — not through GenAI?

🔗  GenAI Literacy Connection (Module 1 — How GenAI Works): Notice that Prompt B asked the GenAI for “honest questions to ask yourself” — not for an answer. This is intentional. GenAI is strong at generating frameworks and prompts for thinking; it is not reliable for making personal decisions that require knowing who you actually are. The GenAI Reflection above is designed to reinforce this boundary: GenAI supported your exploration, but the decision belongs to you.

Faculty Facilitation Notes

Tips, timing shortcuts, and common challenges

Timing Flexibility

• All three exercises can run in class in approximately 22 minutes total (7 + 7 + 8).
• If time is short, Exercise 3 (especially the AI Reflection) can be assigned as the out-of-class component of either assignment.
• Exercise 1 alone can serve as a low-stakes in-class formative check on Focus 2 comprehension.

Common Facilitation Challenges

Challenge	Suggested Response
“I don’t know my interests well enough to fill in the prompts”	Tell students to use their Focus 2 interest category label (e.g., “Investigative” or “Social”) even if they don’t have a specific career in mind yet. GenAI can work with that.
“GenAI said I should be a [career] — so I’m going to do that”	This is the critical teaching moment for Module 1. Redirect: “The AI predicted a likely response, not a life plan. What do you actually think after reading that?” Return to the AI Reflection prompts.
“GenAI gave me salary numbers different from Career Coach”	Excellent observation. Ask the class: which source do you trust more, and why? This is a data literacy and ethics discussion — Career Coach uses BLS data; GenAI may blend multiple sources or have a training data cutoff.
“I can’t think of a next step”	Point students to the concrete examples already in the lesson plan (advisor meeting, related major exploration, workshop, certification, part-time job research). GenAI’s next steps list from Prompt B should also give 4–5 options to choose from.
Students copy the GenAI Reflection answers directly from GenAI	Remind students this section is specifically asking what they — not GenAI — concluded. If needed, require handwritten responses for the GenAI Reflection only.

Grading Guidance

All three exercises are designed as low-stakes, completion-credit activities. The GenAI Reflection in Exercise 3 is the exception — it should be assessed for genuine personal engagement, not completeness alone. Suggested criteria:

• Full credit: Record sheets completed with genuine responses; GenAI Reflection answers are in the student’s own words and reflect personal thinking.
• Partial credit: Most record fields completed; GenAI Reflection present but minimal or generic.
• No credit: Blank, copied GenAI text, or GenAI Reflection answers that clearly restate GenAI output without personal reflection.