FAQs for the Graduate Employment Preparedness Assessment℠

Q1: Who should take GEPA℠?
Anyone interested in getting a better job faster, in their field of interest:
  • Students and recent graduates: of college, university, community college, trade school, grad school, and adult education program programs.
  • Individuals entering the workforce following active military service.
  • Individuals with less than five years’ work experience seeking to make a job or career change.
  • First time career changers.
  • Anyone hitting a roadblock in their current career search efforts.
Q2: How does the Graduate Employment Preparedness Assessment℠? (GEPA℠) differ from other assessments, like Myers-Briggs, Strong Interest Inventory, Campbell Interest & Skill Survey, DiSC and other assessments offered by my college career center?
GEPA℠ complements – not replaces – other popular assessments:
  • Myers-Briggs, Strong Interest Inventory, Campbell Interest & Skill Survey, DiSC and other similar assessments indicate the kind of work for which the individual is best suited.
  • GEPA℠ is the only assessment of its kind that measures an individual’s readiness to conduct a successful career and job search.
  • Unlike the other assessments that end at a score sheet, GEPA℠ provides you with the comprehensive GEPA℠ Development Guide, which is full of templates, checklists, examples, and a customizable action plan to assist you in driving every step of your career search.
Q3: How long does the GEPA℠ assessment take?
GEPA℠ takes about 40 minutes to complete online through our secure testing center, Measured Success™.
Q4: What specifically do I get when I purchase GEPA℠?
You get following powerful tools:
  • An online assessment that takes about 40 minutes to complete and measures what a person does and does not know about the current and emerging best practices of conducting an effective career search;
  • A downloadable Personal Score Report that shows how well the individual scored on his or her GEPA℠ Assessment, including detail about each question, and where to look in the GEPA℠ Development Guide to find the associated best practices;
  • A six-page downloadable Personal Feedback Report that provides a high-level interpretation of the individual’s scores for each of the five GEPA℠ competencies, including suggested next steps;
  • A downloadable GEPA℠ Development Guide, which is a “practical career search guide” containing all of the GEPA℠ best practices, how-to-examples, checklists, templates, and a personal GEPA℠ Action Planner, to help drive every step of a successful career search. Our 2016 edition explains more than 2,500 career and job search best practices, and is fully hyperlinked to assure easy navigation; and
  • Online access to all resources for one year.
Q5: How do I get all of the tools that are included with GEPA℠, like the Development Guide, action planner, templates, checklist, etc?
All of the GEPA℠ resources are available online once you’ve completed your assessment. They will remain accessible to you for a year. While they are copyright-protected materials, you may download them and save them to your computer’s hard drive for personal use.
Q6: What is the ideal time to take GEPA℠?
Simply put, the right time for GEPA℠ is anytime you need to be prepared to conduct an effective career search.
  • For college, university, trade school, and post-graduate students, take GEPA℠ six to twelve months prior to graduation to improve your chances of securing employment upon graduations.
  • For military personnel transitioning to the civilian workforce, take GEPA℠ six months prior to the end of your enlistment, and begin your career search plan immediately.
  • For individuals contemplating a career change, take GEPA℠ immediately to take stock of your current level of preparedness, and then begin utilizing the assortment of tools to help you in your transition.
Q7: I love what GEPA℠ can do for my university’s students. Is there a program for an institutional purchase of GEPA℠?
Absolutely, both in terms of institutional pricing and support programs. Depending on your needs, we’ll tailor a program ideal for your undergraduate, graduate, and adult education programs. Use GEPA℠ to differentiate your school by providing real solutions to a challenging job market. Equip those seeking jobs with the real world job-seeking skills to gain meaningful employment. Click on Higher Education & Institutional Clients and then scroll down to locate the orange bar for more information on “Higher Education & Institutional Applications” or contact us to learn more.
Q8: How could GEPA℠ be incorporated into a career search curriculum?

GEPA℠ was developed to be used in a diagnostic-prescriptive environment, where individuals are assessed to identify the areas in which they most need help. Once the assessment identifies knowledge gaps, use the GEPA℠ Development Guide to fill the knowledge gap. Its guidance, collateral reading, links, templates, checklists, action plans, and examples serve as assignments for students to complete as part of their education.

We’ve developed curriculum that can cover single seminars to robust semester-long programs. Check out the details of the From Classroom to Career℠ curriculum currently in use at the collegiate level as part of an accredited program. Or contact us to learn more.

Q9: Can GEPA℠ be broken up into smaller assessments, or must it be completed as a single 50-question assessment?

We offer GEPA℠ in two versions: a single, 50-question assessment that covers all five search competencies, and as five-10 question assessments, each 10-question assessment covering a single search competence.

This allows the flexibility in a learning, career coaching, or self-coaching environment for a participant to assess a specific competence, and then use the GEPA℠ Development Guide to improve knowledge and understanding about that competence, before moving to the next search competence.

Q10: Does GEPA℠ have a re-test option, in the event we want to measure someone’s learning and retention of the GEPA℠ best practices?
Yes. We offer a GEPA℠ re-test for individuals who have completed an initial assessment. You can purchase it online at a considerable savings over the initial GEPA℠ Assessment. Please contact us for more information.

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