Guidelines For Educational & Professional Development Plan:
Each Fellow engaged in an education-based or professional development Vision Fellowship must submit a detailed Educational and Professional Development Plan to the Vision Fellowship’s executive director. The Fellow must provide updates to the plan as appropriate. If the Fellow has a mentor, the Fellow should work with that mentor to develop and refine the plan.
The plan should include the following elements:
Statement of educational or professional development goals. Include a baseline of existing skills and abilities to help you identify strengths and weaknesses. Your goals should be SMART goals: specific, measurable, attainable, realistic, and time bound. List these goals in order of importance and categorize them into short-term (within six months), medium-term (within one year), and long-term (within one to two years). Generally, aim to set one long term goal and to break up the short-term and mid-term goals into manageable chunks.
Strategies/Development Opportunities. What strategies will you use to achieve your goals? Include a variety of approaches, like engaging in internships or volunteering, developing relationships with mentors, learning from mistakes, learning from others, and taking courses specific to your goals.
Resources. What people or places will help you achieve your goals? These may include in-person or online courses from educational institutions, professors or experts in the field, conferences, webinars, or membership in relevant organizations.
Timelines/Action Plans. Create a timeline and deadlines for your goals. You should consistently revisit, reevaluate, and change your plan over time so that it reflects your progress and to update your strategies and refine your goals.