Bootcamp Master Task List

Field Experience · all 16 activities · built from bootcamp.html

Every task in the bootcamp, in order, exactly as students see it — with a co-teach code on each activity and blank space to write your own pacing. Nothing here is locked. The point of printing it is to argue with it.

How to use this

Read down the list and decide two things per activity: which day it lands on and whether you teach it together or apart. The co-teach codes are a recommendation based on how much of each activity is genuinely identical for both cohorts — not a constraint. Write your day assignments in the margin, then transfer them to the pacing worksheet at the back.

Co-teach One lesson, one room, both cohorts

Split part Co-teach most of it, split for the rest

Separate Genuinely different lessons

The short answer on co-teaching

11 of the 16 activities are fully co-teachable, 3 need a partial split, and only 2 are genuinely separate lessons. The two that cannot be shared are the two where the Placement cohort points at an outside employer and the Enterprise cohort has none: Activity 5 (Explore & Apply) and Activity 13 (Placement Confirmed). Everything else is either identical or the same lesson with different examples.

Activity 10 (Dilemma Stations) and Activity 14 (Goal Conference) are better together, not just cheaper. 15 stations support more pairs than one cohort fills, and the debrief gets sharper when placement and enterprise students argue from different positions. The goal conferences are 1-on-1s — two teachers working in parallel cuts 168 minutes down to 84.
Activity 8 (Mock Interview) is the one to plan carefully. Step 1, peer speed interviews, is better with 24 students. Step 2 needs outside adults, and combining cohorts means 24 students needing interviewers on the same day instead of 14.

Read this before you assign days — the pacing decision only you can make

Content alignment and calendar alignment are two different things. The Placement cohort meets every day and the Enterprise cohort meets A days only, so Placement covers roughly two activities for every one the Enterprise cohort covers. Under the dated calendar as it currently stands, only Day 1 (Thu Aug 13) has both cohorts doing the same activity. After that they drift apart immediately — by Aug 19 Placement is on Activity 5 while Enterprise is on Activity 3.

To actually co-teach, the shared lessons have to be pinned to A days, and the Placement-only work has to fill the B days. That caps you at roughly six shared blocks in the Aug 13–28 window.
The cost of doing that: Explore & Apply gets pushed to a B day after the resume workshop, which moves applications from Aug 19 to Aug 24 or later. That is five fewer days on the employer paperwork clock before the Aug 31 start.
The cost of not doing it: you teach all 12 blocks twice, and the second cohort's version is the one that gets thin when the week gets busy.

This is a real trade between co-teaching efficiency and placement lead time, and it depends on how fast your employers actually turn paperwork around. That is your call, not the document's — the worksheet at the back is there for whichever way you go.

Summary — all 16 at a glance

The full detail follows. This table is for the wall.

#	Activity	Time	Together?	Enterprise
Professional Identity & Course Launch
1	Begin With the End in Mind	~90 min · Day 1	Split part	Adapted
2	Career & Self-Assessment	~90 min · Day 2	Co-teach	Adapted
3	Your Professional Brand	~90 min · Day 2–3	Co-teach	Adapted
4	Resume Workshop	~90 min · Day 3–4	Co-teach	Same
5	Explore & Apply	~90 min · Day 4–5 (apply over weekend)	Separate	Replaced
Interview Prep
6	Elevator Pitch	~90 min	Co-teach	Adapted
7	Interview Skills	~90 min	Co-teach	Adapted
8	Mock Interview	~90 min	Split part	Adapted
9	Interview Improvement Plan	~30–45 min	Co-teach	Same
Workplace Readiness
10	Workplace Dilemma Stations	~90 min	Co-teach	Adapted
11	Meet Your 10 Employability Skills	~45–60 min	Co-teach	Adapted
12	Post-Assessment	~30–45 min	Co-teach	Same
13	Placement Confirmed	Complete as soon as your offer is accepted	Separate	Replaced
Launch
14	Goal Conference	5–10 min per student · Runs across 1–2 class days	Co-teach	Same
15	Internship Plan of Success	~45–60 min	Split part	Adapted
16	Launch Day		Co-teach	Adapted

Professional Identity & Course Launch

Begin With the End in Mind

Course overview · Capstone preview · Syllabus · Website tour · Expectations

Split part ~90 min · Day 1

What we do in class

See the capstone — your 1:30 elevator pitch on the Black Box stage, and your trade show station in the BFAC Lobby. This is where the semester ends. Today we reverse-engineer it.
Review the syllabus, course contract, and what 60 hours of field experience actually looks like
Walk through this website together: your dashboard, weekly log, reflection form, and bootcamp phases
Discussion: what's the difference between showing up as a student versus showing up as an employee?
Overview of the 7 career clusters and what placements are available
Preview the 10 Illinois Essential Employability Skills you'll be assessed on

Student submits

Course Launch Guide — via course-launch.html

Together or apartThe launch, syllabus, site tour and expectations are identical. Split only for the last 15 minutes: the two cohorts have different capstone dates and a different gate.

Enterprise cohort — adaptedShow the May capstone, not December. Gate is "not current, not remote" instead of "not on the schedule." Preview the Quarterly Review Board dates (Oct 15 · Dec 16 · Mar 11) so they know they present to adults who are not you.

Our day / our changes

Career & Self-Assessment

Career interest reflection · Employability skills pre-assessment · Professional goals

Co-teach ~90 min · Day 2

What we do in class

Rate yourself on all 10 employability skills (1–4 scale) — this is your baseline. You'll do it again at the end to see how you've grown.
Career interest reflection: what fields interest you, what do you want to explore, what are you good at?
Write your professional goal for the semester — what do you want to walk away with?
Class discussion: what do employers actually look for beyond skills?

Goal-writing scaffold

What I want to do: A specific outcome — not "get better at communication" but "learn how to run a client meeting from start to finish"
Why it matters to me: Your honest reason, not what sounds good
How I'll know I got there: One thing you'll be able to show or do by the end of the semester

Discussion prompts

What career cluster excites you most — and what surprised you about your own answer?
What's one skill you have that employers might not see on paper?
If your employer asked "what do you want to get out of this?" — what would you actually say?

Student submits

Self-Assessment — via self-assessment.html?type=pre

Together or apartIndividual assessment plus whole-group discussion. More voices in the discussion is a gain, not a cost.

Enterprise cohort — adaptedSame instrument and same goal-writing scaffold. Add market research alongside the career cluster work: who already does what you do, what do they charge, who buys it. Bulldog Media students research comparable school and small-market media operations.

Our day / our changes

Your Professional Brand

Digital footprint audit · LinkedIn setup · Professional email signature · Social media + first impressions

Co-teach ~90 min · Day 2–3

What we do in class

Google yourself — right now, in class. What comes up? What would an employer see?
Social media audit discussion: what's public, what's professional, what needs to change before you start interviewing
Build your professional email signature — your name, title (Field Experience Student), school, and contact info
Real examples: how a digital footprint has cost people jobs and opportunities
Phone communication roleplay: cold-calling a potential employer

Social media audit checklist

My profile photo is something an employer would think is professional
I checked my most recent public posts — nothing I wouldn't want my placement supervisor to see
I removed or made private anything tagged, shared, or public that needed it
My bio describes me the way I want to be described professionally

LinkedIn setup

I created or cleaned up my LinkedIn profile — professional photo, current city, high school listed
I wrote a headline that says more than my school (e.g., "Field Experience Student | Interested in Healthcare + Business")
I left space on my profile to add my resume in Activity 4

Student submits

Confirm Your Email Signature — in-page on bootcamp.html (typed response)

Together or apartGoogle-yourself, the 7-item audit, LinkedIn setup, email signature and the cold-call roleplay are the same for everyone.

Enterprise cohort — adaptedAdd a second brand layer on top of the personal one: business name, logo, how a customer actually contacts you, where they would find you. For a self-employed student the personal brand is the company brand. Bulldog Media students audit against the school's existing brand standards rather than inventing their own.

Our day / our changes

Resume Workshop

Build · AI feedback · Peer review · Conference · Final draft

Co-teach ~90 min · Day 3–4

What we do in class

Resume structure walkthrough — what goes where and why different resumes look different for different people
Translating school experiences into workforce language: "I was on the team" → "Led a 12-person team through…"
Action verb practice — the difference between listing a job and owning one
References: how to ask professionally, who to ask, what they need to say
In-class build time + peer review with a partner
Use AI to get a first-round review before your peer: paste your resume into Claude or ChatGPT and ask "What's weak on this resume and what would make it stronger?" — fix those first, then swap with a partner
Teacher or partner conference on your draft before final
Once your resume is final, upload it to your LinkedIn profile — it becomes a portfolio artifact employers can see before they even open an application

Student submits

Submit Your Resume Link — in-page on bootcamp.html

Together or apartIdentical build, AI feedback, peer review and conference cycle.

Enterprise cohort — sameNo change to the activity. Expect pushback — "I don't need a resume, I work for myself." The answer: college, scholarships, and the day the business ends. "Founded and ran a business in high school" is the strongest line most of them will have for years.

Our day / our changes

Explore & Apply

Browse job menu · Research employers · Meet with teacher · Apply · Follow-up

Separate ~90 min · Day 4–5 (apply over weekend)

What we do in class

Browse the placement list on this site — explore what's available across all 7 career clusters
Employer scavenger hunt: research your top 2–3 choices. Find out what they do, who works there, what they value
Match your skills from your resume to the placements you're interested in
Meet with your teacher to talk through your choices and confirm your application plan
Submit your application(s) — this starts the clock on employer paperwork, so the sooner the better

Employer research — know before you go

Before applying: look up their website, LinkedIn, and Google reviews. What do they do? Who works there? Did they recently expand or hire?
Goal: walk into your interview able to say "I noticed you just opened a second location" or "I saw your team focuses heavily on youth programs" — not "so what do you guys do again?"

After you apply

Send a follow-up email 5–7 business days after applying if you haven't heard back — brief, professional, confirms your interest
Send a thank-you email within 24 hours of any interview — one paragraph, reference something specific from the conversation, confirm you want the role
Both emails go in your portfolio — they're evidence of professional communication, not just formalities

Student submits

Your Top Placements — in-page on bootcamp.html (typed response)

Together or apartThere is no job menu to browse and no employer to apply to. Nothing in this activity transfers.

Enterprise cohort — replacedReplaced by Define Your Enterprise — see the detail page. This is the block that makes the Enterprise year gradeable, so it carries the same do-not-move weight that Explore & Apply carries for the Placement cohort.

Our day / our changes

Interview Prep

Elevator Pitch

Write it · Workshop it · Record it

Co-teach ~90 min

What we do in class

Structure: hook → background → value → ask. Thirty seconds to tell someone exactly why they should hire you
Write your pitch in class — first draft, no judgment
Deliver it to three different partners. Get real feedback: was it clear? Did you sound confident? Did it sound rehearsed?
Refine and record your final video pitch — this becomes a portfolio piece and your capstone warmup

Student submits

Submit Your Elevator Pitch — in-page on bootcamp.html (typed response)

Together or apartSame lesson, same structure, same record-and-submit. Only the subject of the pitch differs, and that is a per-student difference anyway.

Enterprise cohort — adaptedThe pitch is the business, not the job seeker: what I do → who it is for → what problem it solves → what I am asking for. Add one question to each rehearsal round: would you actually buy this?

Our day / our changes

Interview Skills

Real situations · What to wear · Body language · Communication

Co-teach ~90 min

What we do in class

Situational practice: "Tell me about a time when…" — you'll work through real scenarios from actual workplaces. The goal is having your own stories ready, not memorizing scripts.
Common interview questions + how to prep honest answers without sounding rehearsed
What to wear: professional appearance varies by placement type — a hospital, a restaurant, and a law firm all look different
Body language: what nervous looks like from the outside and how to correct for it — eye contact, posture, what to do with your hands
Communication: how to handle a question you don't know, how to ask for clarification, what to do when the answer honestly is "I'm not sure yet"

Student submits

Two Quick Scenarios — in-page on bootcamp.html (typed response)

Together or apartDress, body language, communication and STAR are identical. Teach STAR hard here for both cohorts — it is also the weekly reflection format all year.

Enterprise cohort — adaptedSame STAR teach, client-side questions: why hire you over someone with more experience, what happens if you miss my deadline, what do you charge and why. Most students have never said a price out loud and defended it.

Our day / our changes

Mock Interview

Peer speed interviews · Formal mock · Real feedback · Question bank

Split part ~90 min

Step 1 — Peer speed interviews (whole class)

Class splits in half: one side interviews, the other answers. Each pair gets 2–3 questions from the interview question bank, then rotate down the line.
After 30 minutes, switch sides — the interviewers become interviewees. Everyone practices both roles.
Interviewees don't know which questions are coming. That's the point — you get comfortable answering live, unrehearsed, for a rotating set of people.

Step 2 — Formal mock interview (community partner)

1-on-1 with a business partner, chamber member, or administrator — ideally someone you don't know well
Your interviewer uses a structured feedback form. You receive written feedback immediately after — specific, honest, actionable.
Goal is two interviews each during this block. When you're not in the chair, review the feedback from your last one.
No one gets a perfect mock interview. That's the point. You find out what to fix before the real one.

Student submits

Confirm Mock Interview Completed — in-page on bootcamp.html (typed response)

Together or apartStep 1 (peer speed interviews) is better with 24 students than 14 — more partners, more reps. Step 2 splits: one cohort needs interviewers, the other needs a pitch panel.

Enterprise cohort — adaptedStep 1 runs together, unchanged. Step 2 becomes a Client Pitch Panel: 5-minute pitch plus 2 minutes of questions to 3–4 panelists. Recruit the panel from people you would also want on the Quarterly Review Boards — it doubles as an audition for both sides.

Our day / our changes

Interview Improvement Plan

Review feedback · Identify gaps · Write action steps · AI practice partner

Co-teach ~30–45 min

What we do in class

Review the feedback from your mock interview — what did you do well, what needs work?
Identify 2–3 specific areas to improve before your real interview
Write concrete action steps: not "be more confident" — "practice answering the 'tell me about yourself' question out loud three times before my interview"
Use AI as a practice partner between now and your real interview: open a chat and say "Act as the hiring manager at [company name]. Interview me for [role] and give me real questions. Rate my answers and tell me what to improve." — repeat until you feel ready.

Student submits

Submit Your Improvement Plan — in-page on bootcamp.html

Together or apartEach student works from their own feedback form. Identical process regardless of who gave the feedback.

Enterprise cohort — sameSame activity. One addition: where the pitch itself was the weak point, the improvement plan should revise the enterprise scope, not just the delivery.

Our day / our changes

Workplace Readiness

Workplace Dilemma Stations

15 dilemmas · Carousel stations · Career clusters · Class debrief

Co-teach ~90 min

What we do in class

Carousel activity: 15 dilemma stations set up around the room. Small groups rotate every few minutes, read the scenario, and discuss what they'd do.
Scenarios span all 7 career clusters — a healthcare confidentiality situation, a manufacturing safety shortcut, a supervisor asking something that feels wrong in an education setting, a customer conflict in retail, and more
After rotating, the class picks 2–3 scenarios to debrief together — groups share what they decided and why
You'll disagree with each other. That's the activity. There's often no single right answer — what matters is how you think it through.
If you were absent: all 15 dilemma scenarios are linked here so you can review them and mark complete

Student submits

Which Dilemma Stuck With You? — in-page on bootcamp.html (typed response)

Together or apartActively better together. 15 stations support more pairs than one cohort fills, and the debrief is richer with placement and enterprise students arguing from different positions.

Enterprise cohort — adaptedAdd an enterprise framing card at each station: you have no supervisor to escalate to — now what? Close the debrief on the four they will actually face: a client who will not pay, a deadline you are going to miss, work you are not qualified for, and a customer who wants something unethical.

Our day / our changes

Meet Your 10 Employability Skills

Quick overview · What each one actually means · Why you'll see them all semester

Co-teach ~45–60 min

What we do in class

This is your quick shot — a fast walkthrough of all 10 Illinois Essential Employability Skills before you rate yourself again in the post-assessment. We're going for breadth, not depth.
For each skill, you'll write one sentence in your own words: what does it actually mean, and where did you see it show up in Phase 1 or 2?
We'll clarify the ones that get confused with each other — critical thinking vs. problem-solving vs. decision-making are not the same thing, and the difference matters when you're in the field
By the end, you should be able to name all 10 and describe each one without looking at the list. You'll go deeper into each one throughout the semester — this is the foundation.

Student submits

One Sentence, Each Skill — in-page on bootcamp.html

Together or apartSame 10 skills, same 4/3/2/1 scale, same standard: a 3 means you performed to the level a paying employer expects.

Enterprise cohort — adaptedAdd how scoring actually works for them: three voices, not two — their own self-assessment, their client or advisor feedback form, and the Quarterly Review Board. A 2-level gap triggers a conversation, not a quiet override.

Our day / our changes

Post-Assessment

Re-rate your 10 employability skills · See your growth since Phase 1

Co-teach ~30–45 min

What we do in class

Re-rate yourself on all 10 Illinois Essential Employability Skills using the same 1–4 scale from Phase 1
Compare your scores: where did you grow? Where are you still working?
This isn't about being perfect — it's about being honest so your placement experience can be intentional
Write a short reflection: what surprised you about your growth? What do you want to focus on during your 60 hours?

Student submits

Post-Assessment — via self-assessment.html?type=post

Together or apartIndividual work on the identical instrument, compared against each student's own Phase 1 baseline.

Enterprise cohort — sameNo change.

Our day / our changes

Placement Confirmed

Confirm your employer · Training agreement · Onboarding paperwork

Separate Complete as soon as your offer is accepted

What this means

You've accepted an offer from a placement employer — congratulations
Confirm your employer here so your teacher can start the hiring paperwork process
The earlier this is confirmed, the more time your employer has to complete all required documents before your start date
Your employer may also have their own onboarding paperwork — especially if you're getting paid. This can include tax forms, direct deposit info, and ID verification. Sit down with a parent or guardian to complete these. Don't guess on legal documents.
Don't have a confirmed placement yet? Keep at it. Talk to your teacher about next steps.

Student submits

Confirm Your Placement — in-page on bootcamp.html

Together or apartNo employer, no training agreement with an outside business, no onboarding paperwork.

Enterprise cohort — replacedReplaced by Enterprise Confirmed — see the detail page. Sign off individually on final scope, named client or advisor, hours plan, where the work physically happens, and the remote work agreement. An unconfirmed enterprise does not get remote privileges; this is where the gate gets its teeth.

Our day / our changes

Launch

Goal Conference

Prep your goals · One-on-one with your teacher · Get expectations cleared

Co-teach 5–10 min per student · Runs across 1–2 class days

Come prepared

Before your conference, draft your 2–3 goals. Your teacher shouldn't be the one prompting you to come up with them — arrive with answers ready.
Think through: What do you want to get out of this placement? What skill do you most want to improve? What would make this semester feel worth it?
Come with any questions or concerns too. What are you nervous about? What's still unclear? This is the place to name it — not Day 1 at your placement.

What we do in class

5–10 minute one-on-one with your teacher — not a check-in, a real conversation about your placement and what you want from it
Set 2–3 goals for your semester: specific, achievable, and tied to what you actually care about
Review the time log and reflection process one more time — everyone does a test submission so there are no surprises

While you wait for your conference

Conferences run 1–2 full class days. When you're not in the chair, you'll get started on the first in-depth employability skill lesson or continue refining your elevator pitch for the capstone.

Student submits

Come Prepared — Draft Your Goals — in-page on bootcamp.html (typed response)

Together or apartThe single biggest co-teach win in the bootcamp. These are 1-on-1s: 24 students at 7 minutes is 168 minutes for one teacher, or 84 minutes each if you split the list. Same form, same questions, run in parallel.

Enterprise cohort — sameSame conference and same form. Add one question for this cohort: what would make you quit on this by November? Self-directed students fail from drift, not from lack of skill, and the answer tells you where to coach.

Our day / our changes

Internship Plan of Success

Your roadmap for the semester · Professional intro email

Split part ~45–60 min

What we do in class

Write your internship plan of success — your schedule, your goals, how you'll handle challenges, and how you'll track your 60 hours
Draft a professional introduction or thank you email to your placement supervisor — your first real professional communication with them
Review: what does logging hours look like on the site? What does a good weekly reflection look like? We'll do a live test submission together so everyone knows the process before it counts.

Student submits

Submit Your Internship Plan — in-page on bootcamp.html (typed response)

Together or apartSame lesson and same work time; the template and the intro email target differ.

Enterprise cohort — adaptedBusiness Plan of Success instead: two focus skills, what exists by December, what exists by May, weekly hours target, how you will know it worked. The professional intro email goes to a client or advisor rather than a site supervisor.

Our day / our changes

Launch Day

Set your #1 goal · Submit & Launch · Receive your Launch Card

Co-teach

What this moment is

You've done the work. Resume built. Pitch practiced. Interview survived. Placement confirmed. Goals set.
Write your single most important goal for this semester — one sentence, honest and specific
Hit Submit & Launch. Your Launch Card generates and lives on your dashboard permanently
You are no longer a student preparing for a job. You're a student employee. Go make it count.

Student submits

Your #1 Goal This Semester — in-page on bootcamp.html (typed response)

Together or apartSame ritual, same Launch Card. Only worth co-teaching if you decide to align the two cohorts' final day — under the current calendar they are three weeks apart.

Enterprise cohort — adaptedSame ritual on a different date. Post the Review Board dates one more time, and name the first remote A day out loud so the transition is not vague.

Our day / our changes

Pacing Worksheet — Placement Cohort

14 students, every day. 12 blocks between Thu Aug 13 and Fri Aug 28, first day at placement Mon Aug 31. Dates are pre-filled from the school calendar; the activity column is yours.

Date

Activity

Notes

Thu Aug 13 (A)

Fri Aug 14 (B)

Mon Aug 17 (A)

Tue Aug 18 (B)

Wed Aug 19 (A)

Thu Aug 20 (B)

Fri Aug 21 (A)

Mon Aug 24 (B)

Tue Aug 25 (A)

Wed Aug 26 (B)

Thu Aug 27 (A)

Fri Aug 28 (B)

Pacing Worksheet — Enterprise Cohort

10 students, A days only, full year. 12 A-day blocks between Thu Aug 13 and Tue Sep 15 (Labor Day Sep 7 falls out). Shaded dates are the six A days where both cohorts are in the building — those are your only co-teach windows.

Date

Activity

Notes

Thu Aug 13 (A) ●

Mon Aug 17 (A) ●

Wed Aug 19 (A) ●

Fri Aug 21 (A) ●

Tue Aug 25 (A) ●

Thu Aug 27 (A) ●

Mon Aug 31 (A)

Wed Sep 2 (A)

Fri Sep 4 (A)

Wed Sep 9 (A)

Fri Sep 11 (A)

Tue Sep 15 (A)

● = Placement cohort is also in class that day. After Aug 27 the Placement cohort is at their placement sites, so Enterprise blocks 7–12 are solo no matter what you decide.

Time check against your own estimates

The activity times in bootcamp.html add up to roughly 11–13 ninety-minute blocks depending on how long the goal conferences run, which is what makes a 12-block bootcamp fit. The four short ones — Interview Improvement Plan, Meet Your 10 Skills, Post-Assessment, and Internship Plan of Success — are 30–60 minutes each, so they are your natural pairing candidates if you need to reclaim a day.

Generated from bootcamp.html by generate-bootcamp-task-lists.js — rerun it after editing bootcamp activities and this list updates itself. Companion documents: Enterprise Track — What's Different · Bootcamp Calendar · Grading Policy.