Wanted: Gerontology Workers, Gerontological Specialists, and Gerontologists for careers now and into the future.

As our population of persons aged 65 and over grows and lives longer through these ages, the need for more practitioners with gerontology-specific training is growing as well. Opportunities for careers in gerontology are everywhere and more are appearing every day, however the increasing number of options in this field makes the task of finding information, mentoring, and jobs more difficult. How do you know if gerontology is right for you and what options for practice are available?

101 Careers in Gerontology will guide you in your search, providing glimpses into and information about a broad range of options that are gerontology-specific or gerontology-related.

This guide is for all levels of job seekers-college or high school students looking to begin careers or paths of study, professionals needing credentials, mid-career job seekers, even guidance counselors or parents looking for help counseling young adults. Types of jobs and where you would work-including areas you may not have considered such as clothing design, anthropology, or law-education requirements for those jobs, practitioner profiles, and emerging job prospects are all outlined to give you the information you need to decide which path in gerontology is right for you. Interviews with practitioners provide insight on what it's like to be starting out in gerontology or to have worked in the field for years, as well as the experience of starting out with a degree versus on-the-job learning.

So go ahead, use this book and tweak your interest, spur your imagination, or identify a broader spectrum of career possibilities that might be a good fit for you. Welcome to the exciting, dynamic, and ever-expanding professional world of Gerontology!

C. Joanne Grabinski, MA, MA, ABD, is President/Educator & Consultant of AgeEd, in Mt. Pleasant, Michigan; Lecturer (1992-current), Gerontology Program at Eastern Michigan University in Ypsilanti, Michigan; and Adjunct Professor (1998-current) at Saint Joseph College in West Hartford, Connecticut. She was Director and Assistant Professor (1984-1991), Interdisciplinary Gerontology Program at Central Michigan University in Mt. Pleasant, Michigan. She holds a BS degree in Home Economics Education from Oregon State University, MA degrees in Educational Administration: Community Leadership and in Family Relations from Central Michigan University, and completed doctoral work (ABD) in Family Ecology: Adult Development & Aging, with cognates in Gerontology and Sociology, at Michigan State University.

Grabinski is the curriculum designer/professor of the first Introduction to Careers in Gerontology course in the United States. She has been actively involved in the Gerontological Society of America (GSA) and the Association for Gerontology in Higher Education (AGHE) for the past 27 years, serving on committees for both and as an elected member of the AGHE Executive Board, and is a long-standing member of the American Society on Aging. Grabinski is an AGHE Fellow in Gerontology and Geriatrics Education (awarded 1999), was an AGHE Distinguished Teacher (1997) and received an AGHE Part-Time Faculty Certificate of Recognition (2004).