Career Discovery

Career Discovery is a hands-on experience that allows students to explore and discover what work excites them, what they're good at, and what fits them best. Anchored in partnerships with Podium Education and a network of real employers, this immersive experience is a fun, risk-free way for students to try different areas of focus while also building resume-worthy experience. In this course, in which students will have the opportunity to explore career paths by actually trying them, students will:

Investigate careers through real projects with companies like L’Oréal, Intel, and charity: water.
Develop essential workforce skills and experience a wide range of functions and industries.
Discover jobs they didn’t know existed, and learn directly from real professionals.
Gain clarity and confidence in their next steps toward choosing a career.

NOTE: This course is taught 40% asynchronously online. In person meeting times reflected under days and times listed.

Course Details

Prefix:

UCO

Course Number:

1200

Section Number(s) and Day/Times Taught:

189: W 5:00pm -6:30pm- online

190: R 4:30pm- 6:00pm- online

188: W 5:00pm- 6:30- online

191: R 4:30pm- 6:00pm- online

Term:

Spring 2026

Categories:

Career Development

Instructor(s)

Geralyn Jordan

Geralyn Jordan is the Associate Director for Career Development in the Career Development Center, focusing on classroom presentations and 1:1 coaching for students in the Reich College of Education and AppState Student Veterans. Geralyn is also an adjunct instructor teaching across multiple departments. Prior to coming to Appalachian State University, she was a Recruiter for AppleOne, focusing on Administrative and Financial opportunities for both transitioning military members and civilians in Newport News, Virginia. A passion for working with college-aged students and those looking for careers brought her back to Higher Education and to Appalachian State. Geralyn has a BS in Public Relations and Public Speaking as well as an MS in Educational Leadership from Mansfield University in Pennsylvania.

Hannah Finkelstein

Hannah Finkelstein is a graduate of two North Carolina institutions of higher education. She matches her teaching skills from her Middle School Education degree from Barton College with her passion for social justice and higher education fostered during her masters program in Higher Education Administration at North Carolina State University. After a few years of adjunct teaching, Hannah is thrilled to join the rank of full time first year seminar lecturers. Her goal is to make sure students feel welcome and at home in the classroom to encourage dialogue and conversation around a variety of topics. In the 2023 Fall Semester, Hannah taught Power, Privilege, and Action, a course focused on social change and activism, and Howdy Neighbor: Getting to Know Yourself and Your Community.

In her time outside the classroom, Hannah enjoys fiber-work, playing Dungeons and Dragons, and longs walks with her cuddly Great Pyrenees, Moose.

Jennifer Shaffer

An accomplished higher education leader with over two decades of experience, Jennifer Shaffer serves as the Director of the Career Development Center at Appalachian State University. In this role, she provides strategic vision and operational leadership to empower students in achieving lifelong career success. Jennifer leads a dynamic team of career professionals, oversees institutional partnerships, and steers data-informed initiatives to expand career readiness and engagement across campus.

Before joining the Career Development Center, Jennifer served as Senior Associate Registrar at Appalachian State University, overseeing academic records, graduation services, and directing university commencement. Earlier in her career, she held progressively responsible leadership roles at Johns Hopkins University and the University of Maryland, with a strong focus on admissions, academic program administration, and student services.

She holds a Master of Science in Management from the University of Maryland University College and a Bachelor of Arts in English from the University of Maryland, College Park. She is an active contributor to university-wide student success initiatives and serves on multiple advisory and strategic planning committees. Jennifer has presented nationally on career development and employer relations and is a graduate of the AppState Chancellor’s Academic Leadership Development Program.