Career readiness can now mean a lot of different things—especially in today’s education landscape. As we know, some students go to college to perfect their professional skills, others may go to a trade school, and some may jump right into a career after they finish high school. Thanks to career and technical education programs, however, many students are able to learn viable skills and quickly begin a relevant career. Career readiness means different things for different students, and it often involves taking unique paths on the way there. Whatever routes students take to an eventual career, however, there are plenty of ways in which their education experiences and even course selection can affect them. And, teachers can play a role in helping them build career readiness, too.



Career Readiness Programs in Schools


Though they tend to ramp up for high school students, career readiness programs have value across all levels of education. Of course, we’re not saying that first graders should be completing on-the-job training, but there are subtle approaches teachers can utilize at all grade levels. For example, age shouldn't prevent students from building foundational problem-solving, interpersonal, and creative skills. Plus, in the schools with developed and consistent CTE programs, teachers can often help prepare students a bit more for a workforce that evolves constantly. While some commonly sought after jobs require a 4-year degree, many of the newer ones don’t necessarily have this requirement. So, they are often perfect for those graduates with career-oriented skills. And, the need for workers to fill these “new collar” roles is always growing. 


Developing the skills for a developed workforce.


Students who've had hands-on experiences in areas related to current and future job trends can certainly appear valuable. This often comes back to most lecture-based learning not fully replicating that hands-on practice students receive in career readiness programs. There are also some shortcomings when it comes to developing specialized skills along the way. When school and district leaders establish career readiness programs, however, it illuminates a slew of new possibilities—not only for high school students to discover something they’re good at or passionate about, but for middle school students to do so as well. Since the scope of STEM careers is constantly widening, students in these programs can gain experience in lots of different industries and even learn what it might take to pursue them. Today, that includes everything from information technology and manufacturing to agriculture, health science, and so many more.


The relationship between CTE and job placement.


In some career readiness programs, students learn from educators who have expertise or, often, a career in that particular field. This, of course, helps them with sharing firsthand insight and practical tips with all their students. Students in career-focused programs even meet regularly with career counselors to help map out a potential path for them following graduation or to review their career readiness assessment. While regular participation in career readiness programs helps students find potential professions, they are also great for helping employers fill vacant jobs. They sometimes struggle with filling these new jobs and the emergence of school-based career programs could help bridge that gap. It’s hard to ignore certain industry demands and CTE experiences can help students prepare to step right in. 


a CTE instructor doing a demonstration for high school students in a classroom



What it Means to Have Career Readiness


Like a lot of labels, there’s no one, clear-cut definition of what a career-ready student looks like. In fact, two students taking the same classes led by the same teacher for the same period of time may walk out of that particular class feeling two different ways about whether or not they’re career ready. One working definition of career readiness is attaining and demonstrating certain competencies for a successful transition into the workplace. This would typically describe soon-to-be college graduates but, more so than ever before, this is equally relative to high school students who may be preparing to begin a career after graduation as well. If you ask us, career readiness is as much about soft skills as building proficiency in one area of expertise. 


Soft skills and career readiness.


To find success in various new collar careers, there are technical skill requirements but employers certainly consider more than that. Soft skills are a huge part of what makes someone career ready. Though this has been a huge focus over the last decade or so, it’s still rising in importance. In order for students to develop these soft skills, practical practice helps, but so too does their overall education experience. By learning to think critically, creatively solve problems, analyze issues, make sound decisions, and collaborate with their peers, students become much better equipped to enter the workforce. And, as educators look for ways to help them develop these skills, they can start with their everyday instruction. 


Transferrable skills in the real world.


Some proponents of career readiness find it useful to focus on three types of skills development. Together, these factors collectively help identify when someone is likely ready to begin a career. We'd mentioned soft skills and that is one subset but there are also hard skills and transferable skills. Soft skills are adaptive and don’t usually require formal training for people to master, though they are still very important. Hard skills are learned behaviors and may include certifications. They're also usually relevant to specific jobs but generally required for success in most modern professional areas. Transferable skills are those that professionals can help colleagues learn, such as the ability to motivate others, successfully deal with obstacles, and applying knowledge from past experiences. These skill sets, combined with true desires to make a difference in the workforce, are all indicators of career readiness. 




Helping Students Build Future Plans


It’s generally smart for students to plan for their future and more important for those students who will soon enter the real world. Upon graduation, many students will continue their education in college but others will immediately begin a career. For these students, working with career counselors to develop a plan is often a measure worth taking. The economy is continuing to evolve in unique ways and students often need to ask themselves a few important questions for guiding their professional path. For starters, they'll need to know who they are, who they want to be, and how they can get there. When they can work with a counselor who knows how to guide them as they take these steps, they can more easily find their way and begin pursuing something they like and are good at.


CTE training for the near and long term.


When deciding whether to pursue a career and choosing a field, it could take many conversations between counselors and students. Once they ultimately decide, enrolling in career preparation programs while still in high school could make a huge difference. Besides helping them build on-the-job skills, students who take part in programs like this also tend to achieve higher grades and demonstrate greater engagement levels. They are also more likely to graduate and develop a better understanding of the relationship between what they’ve learned from being in the program and how to use that knowledge as they begin their career. They could also decide to use this as a foundation and continue training after graduation—it’s different for all. 


Working with career readiness counselors.


In some schools in which career preparation is more of a priority, counselors work with students starting in middle school by using surveys to identify passions. This helps them learn about potential career matches and some classes they should take. It's also better than arbitrarily picking something because the students can draw on their own interests, passions, and skills. Once they have a general idea of something that they might want to do, they can start working with a counselor. They can also build on these plans each year by completing class work and partaking in relevant extracurricular activities or evaluations. Whether they work with counselors after school, regularly meet during the school day (or school week), or just focus on career development as part of their academic schedules, having a plan in place is key. Plus, having support from someone within the school can make a world of difference. 


students working with tools as part of a high school career readiness program



More on Career Readiness and How to Teach It


It’s tough to determine if and when a student is career ready and often tougher to help them fully get there. There are also different understandings for the elements career readiness should include for different types of students and even students in different locations. Though complex, this is important across 21st century education, especially for students who will transition into the workforce once they graduate. When it comes down to it, however, educators tend to understand career readiness as one subject area. They can prepare students for entering the job market by providing them with relevant information and practical experiences. Since career readiness skills typically translate to any job, that makes this kind of instruction worthwhile. 


Translating classroom skills to job training.


Some of what’s taught in these career readiness efforts include career exploration, professionalism, career development, financial literacy, and more. If beginning a career, students must have strong communication skills, know how to maximize technology, collaborate, and find the right fit. So, how can educators teach these important abilities? There are actually a lot of different career and technical education examples that are aligned to existing standards. There are also digital resources these teachers can use in any traditional instruction—lectures, group projects, or cooperative experiences. It will also help to cultivate relationships with members of the community to see if they can offer on-the-job experiences or internships so students can get some real, hands-on work in. 


Learning opportunities besides practical experience.


Even if it’s not practical experiences, opportunities to hear from successful professionals in any industry of interest can be valuable. Helping students find internship opportunities is also real important and exposing them to digital content could prove to be beneficial. As stated, soft skills are super important and planning, teaching, and assessing aptitude in certain areas could really help, too. As traditional education shifts from skills towards theory, a gap has formed for students who want to begin a career. With the proper approach and resources, however, teachers can help them build the right skills to start on that journey.




Defining Readiness for Starting a Career


School leaders might prefer to think, along with faculty members, that they can tell when their students are career ready. The truth, however, is that one main indicator for determining this readiness is a standardized assessment. As we know, however, standardized tests don’t really tell the entire story when analyzing kids' readiness and ability. Tests can't measure a student's creative skills, their ability to adapt, or even account for them having an off day. The official method, though it may be unfortunate, however, is referencing their standardized test performance. This is also done in lieu of considering all other available indicators, which, in many cases, paints a clearer picture. So, anytime school leaders report on the percentage of children in the school or district who seem to be career ready, they are simply reporting how many of these students have attained a certain test score. 


Redefining career readiness for students.


More factors than test performance determine each student’s career readiness. They include engagement, the coursework they’ve completed, and the academic and social climates they’ve experienced. With these in mind, administrators might try redefining what career readiness means but, officially, there are criteria in place. In fact, the professionals from the American Association of School Administrators (superintendents) created a program called Redefining Ready, which is intended to help shift these narratives when it comes to career readiness. It provides school leaders with various metrics to determine if the student is prepared. They may, for example, be prepared for college or, based on achievements and abilities, to begin a career.


Indicators of career readiness.


The are multiple areas educators can look at when determining if a student is ready for a career. At a high level, these typically include things like attendance rate, community service accomplishments, workplace experiences, an industry credential, a dual-credit course, and extracurricular activities. These metrics are typically tied to success for students who enter the real world (though it’s not a guarantee). Plus, they are going to shift over time as the workforce and readiness requirements evolve. While these indicators might make sense to educators, it would still be a stretch to consider them as official guidelines. Teachers could, however, bring them up to administrators or school board members to get them thinking about redefining readiness. Or, they can always follow them on their own to help guide students towards those indicators. 


If you've seen success with CTE within your school or district, feel free to leave a comment with your story. Also, if you're looking for any guidance in implementing a school CTE program, feel free to get in touch. For the latest EdTech, STEAM, and 21st century education news, follow us on Twitter and Instagram. Like us on Facebook, too, or sign up for our newsletter for our latest product announcements and offerings. If you have an idea for an Eduporium Weekly theme, send us a message on social media or comment below.