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Short Course - Rejuvenate

THE AUTUMN 2024 PROGRAMMES IS NOW FULL. Please email ingrid.seim@ucc.ie if you would like to be placed on a waitlist for next years programme.

  • Fully online course
  • Open to women not currently employed and who wish to get back into the workforce
  • There are no fees for this course as it is fully funded by Taste4Success Skillnet

Introduction

Significant numbers of highly educated, experienced, professional women take a career break for a variety of reasons, planning to return to the workforce when the time is right.

However, women ‘returners’ face significant obstacles when they decide to return to paid employment. Employers and recruitment agencies can be reluctant to employ people without current work experience and many women don’t make it past the CV screening process.

University College Cork, in conjunction with Taste4Success Skillnet, recognised the value of encouraging professional women to return to their careers and developed an innovative programme called Rejuvenate to support them in their quest. 

Developed in 2019, Rejuvenate and has been highly successful in helping women return to paid employment.

There are no fees for this course as it is fully funded by Taste4Success Skillnet.

 

Schedule

Date:    The next programme will commence in spring 2025 - dates to be confirmed. 

Time:    9.30am - 12pm every Tuesday 

Venue:  Online - Participants will need a computer with a good WIFI/Broadband connection

Why Rejuvenate?

Do you want to return to work but worry that your skills are out of date?  Do you lack the confidence to apply for jobs?

Many women fear returning to the workplace, having taken time out to care for family, been made redundant, taken a career break, faced ill health or for one of a myriad of other reasons that life can throw at us.

A loss of confidence, loss of flexibility and worries about relevance of skill-sets are often cited as common reasons for women to postpone or avoid seeking a return to paid work.

Added to this, the feeling of “out-of-dateness” is a concern for many highly skilled women.

Would you like to return to the workforce?

If so, Rejuvenate may be the course for you. It has been specifically designed to help women build their confidence again and to learn practical job hunting skills and techniques to help in their job search and subsequent re-entry into the workforce.

This fully funded course offers a small group of women the opportunity to explore the mechanics of returning to work, alongside some reflective activities to help you plan for your career progression into the future.

Course Programme

Topics include:

  1. Self-assessment and Training Needs Analysis, Professional Motivation
  2. Strategies to build Confidence, Resilience and Assertiveness
  3. Professional Network Development
  4. Mentoring and Active Career Management
  5. Key job searching skills – CVs, Cover Letters, Interview Preparation, Working with Job Agencies
  6. Digital Skills - LinkedIn, Social Media Management and Zoom
  7. Working in a Team and Balancing Work and Life
  8. A project - Career Action Plan - Completion date to be finalised

Ingrid Seim

Contact Details:

Position:

Programme Manager Rejuvenate

Ingrid is an experienced coach, speaker, trainer and facilitator and the founder of Avenues Consultancy & Coaching. She has a master’s degree in Coaching and Positive Psychology from University College Cork, where she currently guest lectures, and is one of the founding members of the Positive Coaching Lab at the School of Applied Psychology.

Ingrid has developed several courses on the topics of leadership, wellbeing, resilience, and work-life balance and regularly writes, lectures, facilitates workshops and gives talks in this field. She is the creator of The No Guilt Solution to Managing it all, a coaching program tailored to women who want to set themselves ambitious professional goals while still retaining a balanced and fulfilled life. Ingrid provides an extensive catalogue of bespoke talks, workshops and trainings for organisations and individual clients, including the 16-week female leadership program SUSTAIN. While passionate about female leadership Ingrid works with all types of audiences to identify strategies for change in ways that broadens perspectives and encourages creative solutions when dealing with transitions, strategic decision-making, and challenging situations.

Ingrid was the 2023 President of Network Ireland Cork, part of a national not-for profit organisation dedicated to the professional and personal development of women.

Areas of expertise include:

  • Organisational and Personal Wellbeing
  • Female Leadership
  • Work-life Balance
  • Resilience Building and Individual Growth
  • Impostor Syndrome
  • Strengths Based Coaching
  • Leadership Development
  • Positive Organisational Psychology
  • Change Management
  • Emotional Intelligence

ingrid.seim@ucc.ie

https://www.linkedin.com/in/ingrid-seim/

 

Ingrid will be joined by career and interview coach Angela Smiddy and a number of other guest lecturers during the delivery of this programme. 

Testimonials

Rejuvenate Graduation - group in atrium UCC

The inaugural Rejuvenate course was held in Cork in Autumn 2019. Rejuvenate has run online since then and feedback from all participants has been very positive.  These are some testimonials from the class of 2023:

“I must say I do feel transformed, I went in not knowing where I was at, after the first session I could see a clearer path. And from then I have become more focused. I know now to take ownership of my career break and not to be embarrassed of or second guess my choice to take care of my kids.”

“I now see that all my education and work experience, many going in different directions are great. I am now proud of my cv and am confident discussing myself to date.”

“The structure of the delivery allowed interaction at my own pace and gave me a sense of purpose and belonging which was missing in my life.”

“The course content was extremely appropriate to my needs and was delivered in an easy to digest manner. Meeting with women in the same situation was invaluable in letting me know I wasn't alone and in giving me confidence. The trainers were extremely knowledgeable and managed to balance a caring and warm approach with encouragement and just the right amount of tough love". 

“I have learnt to view my career break in a more positive light and how to approach it within my CV and cover letter. I feel more focused on the future and feel that I have a good plan to keep me on track". 

 

Fidelma Barry and Emer O'Driscoll also undertook the programme and spoke about their experience to Emma Connolly of the Cork Echo Live.

 

Caroline Seacy speaks about Rejuvenate to PJ Coogan in Cork 96FM's Opinion LIne

Read the lifestyle magazine for Kerry - CONNECT, Taste4Success Skillnet and University College Cork launch Rejuvenate 2020

Hear what participant Colette Kealy had to say during her Radio Interview with KCLR - just click through to 42:45: https://soundcloud.com/kclr96fm/kclr-live-thursday-8-october-2020-part-two 

Or read Colette's interview in Agriland here.

 

Rejuvenate Best Diversity Winner

University College Cork and Taste 4 Success Skillnet were delighted to receive the IITD Best Diversity and Inclusion Award 2020 for our Rejuvenate Programme, which recognised an outstanding and innovative initiative developed by Dr Joanne Uí Chrualaoich and Caroline Seacy MA Mkt, focused on ensuring full access to and participation in the workplace for all.

Registration and Further Information

Further Information

Rejuvenate 2024 is run fully online, enabling women from around the country to participate. 

Additional information about Taste4Success Skillnet and Rejuvenate 2024 is available by visiting the Taste4SuccessSkillnet website. 

We would love to hear from you and will answer any queries you may have.

Email Ingrid Seim at ingrid.seim@ucc.ie or Dr Amy-Jane Troy at amyjane.troy@ucc.ie for further information. 

We always experience significant demand for this free Rejuvenate Programme so we recommend that you complete and submit your application form as soon as possible once registration opens. 

 

 

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