With that it has brought a generation of disengaged learners. And even though virtual learning environments have flourished, the digital divide between the haves and the have-not in our communities has never looked wider. The concern is our youth leaving school without the necessary skills needed for the job market. This global crisis of unprepared youth has significant negative implications for colleges, universities and the job market.
To try and remedy this situation, every learner in every school needs career guidance. Career guidance helps learners understand their strengths and weaknesses and then match them with their skills and interests so that they can get the best suitable career choice.
The main purpose of career guidance is for learners to make educational, training and occupational choices. To manage their careers and move from a general understanding of life and work to a specific understanding of the realistic learning and work options that are open to them. Learners are more engaged in education and are highly motivated about their future when they have a clear understanding of themselves and how they might live and work when they leave school.
The pressure to make career and higher education choices is a nerve-wrecking experience for most learners. There are economic and social benefits when students are supported to make effective transitions from secondary school to further education, training or employment.
According to the Handbook of Innovative Career Counselling, here are five benefits of career counselling:
- Testing to determine strengths and weaknesses.
- Goal setting for greater results.
- Identifying choices in careers.
- Educational support and guidance.
- Job search support.
- Development of an action plan to motivate learners to pursue their career goals.
“The new ‘gig’ economy, with its changing dynamics and evolving careers has created new opportunities for learners, but more often than not, parents and learners do not have access to timely and credible information about available career choices”, says Ganesh Kohli, Founder of International Career and College Counselling.