Christina Tillis – Preparing for and Taking a Professional Certification Exam (Gold – 6 points) - Career Development

                                                                  

I am taking my SHRM certification exam to become a more qualified candidate for business administration internships. As an attorney, I eventually want to work in-house for a company in the compliance and Human Resources departments. The Society for Human Resource Management Certification will allow me in spaces that will give me opportunities better aligned with my career goals. The picture above is of a study session and test registration in early March. 

A strength of this activity is that the course is self-paced, so I am able to develop a study plan that aligns with my weekly schedule. I have found that mornings and gaps between classes are the best times to study. However, the self-paced course requires a level of discipline and consistency that can be challenging without a teacher or instructor actively giving tasks. Thus, this course has taught me the importance of a schedule and study plan in order to get the certification on time. I am improving my time management by keeping a weekly agenda that outlines when I study, which helps me stay on my timeline for taking the exam. 

This activity connects with the knowledge I gained from studying for the Georgia Real Estate exam. That course was also self-paced, so I identified the pattern of utilizing time in the day for instruction. This trend helped tremendously with my SHRM studying plan, and I will continue to hone my own self-discipline and consistency. 

This activity has created the steppingstones to achieve my goals. Ultimately, I want to be an attorney in compliance and Human resources, so learning about the career field as well as having tangible evidence of mastery in the field will help me reach my goals. After this exam, I plan to connect with human resources or compliance attorneys in Atlanta to look for shadowing and internships for the fall. By having this certification, I will be a better and more qualified candidate for those roles. 

 

By Christina Tillis