I somewhat randomly found myself in the Ontario Public Service Careers island in Second Life, and was so impressed I decided to come back tonight. The purpose of the sim is to "expand the notions of
traditional ‘employment outreach’ through a online virtual
collaborative tool where Second Life users tour government work
environments to learn more about the merits of public service work." I spent some time tonight exploring to see how well it accomplishes that mission.
More exploration after the jump...
The welcome center has a lot of basic information, in both French and English, about the career offerings and process in Ontario. Apparently there are a wide range of careers available, as evidenced by an exhibit that featured large signboards profiling various individuals working in law enforcement, communications, education, human resources, and several other fields. Another interactive signboard breaks down the application process very nicely, using animated prims.
The sim developers clearly understand that Second Life is for many people about having fun. So they included silly go-carts little scooters and motorcycles that you can drive around the sim. A fruit stand offers you various veggies and fruits indigenous to the region.
I love how all of the different buildings have some engaging and relevant activity to involve you. The "traffic media centre" shows you actual live feeds from traffic cams all over Ontario, which is quite clever.
At the Science Centre you can analyze a water sample.
In the IT centre, there's a quiz about the different career possibilities. If you answer correctly you get a small prize.
There apparently is a forest fire that you can fight on the island as well, but I couldn't find it.
All-in-all, the Ontario Public Service Careers island is a very smartly built sim that engages the visitor, gives lots of relevant information in various formats, and supports the objective using the affordances of Second Life. If I were looking for work, I would definitely leave with lots of useful information about what opportunities exist in Ontario.
Here's the teleport link if you would to visit yourself.
