Unlocking Potential with the HYPE Courses: Career Preparation for Young Adults with Mental Health Conditions
Do you find the young adults you work with bouncing between jobs frequently, coming up with a new idea each week, or simply seeming lost without a sense of a career path? Career preparation is often rushed or skipped altogether, resulting in a cycle of job turnover and school dropouts. This often leads to prolonged poverty, an overreliance on disability benefits, and a lack of human capital developed. This pattern can also leave young adults feeling disheartened or incorrectly labeled as unmotivated or lacking direction.
A lack of career preparation often leads to prolonged poverty, over-reliance on disability benefits, and a lack of human capital: those experiences, qualifications, and skills that go into a resume, needed to get into meaningful jobs.
The HYPE courses address these challenges directly, with proven tools to support young adults to make informed decisions about work and school and set career goals that align with their values, interests, needs, and aspirations, all while building essential skills and resources that truly matter.
What is the HYPE Course?
The HYPE Course is an adaptation of HYPE, the Helping Youth on the Path to Employment model, designed to be delivered in a group or class format, which may be offered virtually or in person. Intentionally designed to meet the career preparation needs of young adults with mental health conditions, each course encourages peer interaction, fostering an environment where individuals inspire and encourage each other. Through instruction and shared experiences, young adults develop learn, and develop insights on each of the topics, cultivating motivation and commitment to career goals.
There are 3 HYPE Courses: Career Decisions, Work Preparation, and School Preparation. The topics covered by the courses are listed below:
HYPE Courses
Career Decision Making (6 weeks)
A 6-week course
Orientation: Course Overview and Getting to Know Each Other
Session 1: Vocational Interests
Session 2: Choosing a Direction: The Self-Directed Search
Session 3: Personal Criteria and Researching Career Options
Session 4: Exploring Your Talents in the Gig Economy
Session 5: Deciding Our Career Paths
HYPE Work Prep (7 weeks)
A 7 week course
Orientation: Course Overview and Getting to Know Each Other
Session 1: Choosing the Type of Job for You: the Self-Directed Search
Session 2: Networking and the “Elevator Pitch”
Session 3: Exploring Your Talents in the Gig Economy
Session 4: Interviewing Prep: Preparing for the Common Questions
Session 5: Disclosure of a Disability and Accommodations
Session 6: Getting Organized for Work
HYPE School Prep (6 weeks)
A 6 week course.
Orientation: Course Overview and Getting to Know Each Other
Session 1: Choosing a Career Direction for School
Session 2: Choosing a School/Program
Session 3: Applying for School: the Ins and Outs
Session 4: Disability Services and School Accommodations
Session 5: Getting Organized for School
Interested in offering the HYPE Course? HYPE Course Facilitator Training offers:
- Online, self-paced, instructional videos covering
- The HYPE Course curriculum/s
- Group facilitation skills
- Facilitator’s guides, slide decks, worksheets, and materials to deliver each session.
- Live, virtual discussions, demonstrations, and practice components with expert HYPE trainers
- Technical assistance and implementation support as courses are offered
- Additional program consultation is available
Eligible organizations:
- Those that serve young adults aged 18-30 with mental health conditions
- Who has a supervisor on site who is willing to be trained alongside staff to support staff in the implementation
- Are willing and able to release staff time for training and implementing the HYPE Course
- Are dedicated to making a difference in the careers of young adults
Ready to Make a Difference?
If your organization is ready to empower young adults with mental health conditions through comprehensive career preparation, contact us at HYPE@umassmed.edu to explore training opportunities.