Graduate school is an exciting and stressful experience. Students face decisions around choosing classes and finding the “right” internships or jobs. Students often struggle because they are unable to hear their own voices about what matters most.
Strengths-based professional development provides graduate students with a framework to make informed decisions about their futures. Universities that provide students with Strengths-based training:
The Strengths-based workshops I lead use the CliftonStrengths Assessment as a foundational tool.
By understanding their unique Strengths and values, students gain a lens through which they can make healthy, informed decisions and choose meaningful career paths.
Dr. Freedman has led CliftonStrengths Assessment Workshop for a class I teach at Emory University Rollins School of Public Health, Atlanta, US. The class consists of Master of Public Health graduate students, from different academic backgrounds, and with varied set of professional experiences, skills, and career aspirations in public health. I am pleased to say that Dr. Freedman has consistently delivered each time she has conducted this training for my class. She does an excellent job of leading our graduate students assess their strengths, and apply them in contexts that will prepare them as leaders in the field of public health. She brings great knowledge and experience to her workshops, and makes learning enjoyable with her spontaneity and wisdom of working with groups. I found her to be an empathetic and nurturing teacher who goes above and beyond to promote an inclusive classroom. Every student is heard and encouraged. Her post-workshop evaluations are stellar. I highly recommend her as a coach for developing collaborative and leadership qualities for individuals or teams seeking professional development.
Ariela is a stellar career coach! She helped me refine a proposal for a program I was pitching to an organization and prepare for my meeting with their leadership. Ariela’s comments were encouraging, attentive, and specific (thus actionable). Her feedback not only clarified but *energized* my proposal, and I believe it played a significant role in the success of my meeting to pitch the project. I would highly recommend Ariela to anyone seeking assistance with aligning their professional communication with their strengths and values.
I enthusiastically endorse Dr. Ariela Freedman as a CliftonStrengths coach and workshop facilitator. She conducted a three-part series with our university students focused on recognizing personal strengths, communicating strengths to others, and how to leverage strengths in the workplace. The students assessed her as a “dynamic”, “informative” and “approachable” speaker. I look forward to working with her again in the future so more of our students can learn their strengths and how to utilize them in any situation.
Ariela has a gift for bringing out the very best in people. The graduate students who work with her say that they learned how to tell their story in a more authentic and compelling way – not only to those around them, but to themselves as well.
Ariela really helped me figure out my strengths as well as helping me realize how those strengths can be weaknesses at times. I use what I learned from her throughout each interview process and greatly appreciate the time and attention she gave. Highly recommend!
I’ve worked with Dr. Ariela Freedman in both a group interviewing workshop and in a 1:1 coaching session, and I can confidently say that these experiences were transformative to my job market process. One particularly transformative element is her incredible ability to help me distill my experiences into interview responses that highlight my strengths. Through my work with Ariela, I have become a stronger interviewer and have learned how to identify roles that will allow my strengths to shine. The knowledge that I gained in my coaching sessions will continue to serve me as I build my career.
I had great experience working with Ariela. She listened to me attentively and created a confidential atmosphere so that I could share my needs and concerns openly. The discussions helped me gain greater clarity about the different projects I was working on, specially when writing grant applications. Ariela’s enthusiasm and positivity are contagious. She helped me to focus on my own strengths and to use my strengths to overcome self-doubts. This was immensely helpful to boost my self-confidence when I went to job interviews.
I regularly receive glowing feedback from our graduate students on Ariela’s coaching and workshops. She is a warm, knowledgeable, and engaging presenter, and a pleasure to work with on the administrative side. Ariela is excellent at what she does.