Trying to decide what career path you want to take can be confusing and daunting when you’re an adult, let alone when you’re 14 or 15 and negotiating the tricky byways of adolescence. We asked two career guidance experts for their advice to students – and their parents – who are entering their final years at college, one from a high school and the other from a university.
How would you advise Year 10 students on course selection for Year 11 and onward, especially if they are not sure what they would like to do for a degree or career?
In the coming years, as you approach the end of secondary school, you may find you’re often asked, “What do you want to be when you grow up?”. If you don’t have an answer, relax. Many, if not most, people don’t know what career they want to pursue.
In the modern world of work, it’s no longer the norm to choose and follow only one career throughout your working life. We recommend students keep their options open by continuing with a variety of subjects, even those they may find more difficult than others.
It is crucially important that students access help to explore the options available to them when they finish school. As part of this process, we recommend students aim to identify and follow their passion in a realistic way, rather than pursuing something that seems like ‘a good job’, offering income and security. After all, students are more likely to be happy and successful if they study something they’re passionate about. It’s also important they research the entry requirements and job prospects of careers that interest them.
Those who choose to study at university should remember that students often change their plans and ideas about their future during the course of study. At Massey University, we encourage our students to take advantage of every opportunity, to challenge themselves, make friends, access the help and support that’s available, to give back and try new things.
Does the current system provide sufficient flexibility for students who aren’t entirely sure what they want to do after college?
Yes, we believe a university education does provide flexibility for students. Increasingly, universities are rediscovering the ‘generalist’ degree and encouraging students to study a broad subject range, but students should expect to be experts in something. Many career options that may be considered ‘specialist’, such as human resources and teaching to name a few, can be pursued through postgraduate study with far better outcomes.
Additionally, many university programmes now have a common first year in which all students study the same courses, providing a ‘taster’ of a wide range of subjects, before choosing a specialisation.
Are there any ways colleges could better prepare students for university?
Students need to be aware of the ways in which university is different from secondary school. Successful students tend to be skilled in self-management, seeking help, working in teams, communication, managing their time and working with people from a range of backgrounds and cultures.
Mark Rainier, Massey University Career & Employability Service
How would you advise Year 10 students on course selection for Year 11 and onward, especially if they are not sure what they would like to do for a degree and/or career?
We realise that 14- and 15-year-olds most often don’t know what they want to be when they leave school. But through an in-depth course, called Rangatahi Futures, we give Year 10s the opportunities and tools to think about themselves in terms of strengths, interests and values. This course is followed up throughout the year with a visit to the Career Expo in Auckland, access to Careers Central and other career information, as well as through conversations with academic counsellors. Students set short-term and long goals for themselves and are expected to reflect on how well they have achieved their goals in their mid-year reports. All of this, together with their current academic achievements, help students decide what their three selected courses for the next year will be. Their other three courses – science, maths and English – are all compulsory for Year 11s. Any students who are unsure are advised to keep their options open. For Year 12s, that means taking maths, English and at least one science subject.
Do you have any advice for parents of senior students who are unsure? How do they keep stress over this to a minimum during what is often a tumultuous time anyway?
The best advice for parents is to read our course directory carefully, and to talk with their child’s academic counsellor and/or with the school’s careers advisor. Assurances that there are a wide range of tertiary study options and needs in the workplace for people with many and varied skills also help students to not become stressed. If you look at the six key areas that the New Zealand government has identified – investment, export markets, innovation, skilled and safe workplaces, natural resources and infrastructure – you can see that well educated people will be needed with a wealth of different skill sets. That is what we aim to give our students so they can be ready.
Does the current system provide sufficient flexibility for students who aren’t entirely sure what they want to do after college?
Absolutely, because we offer both highly academic subjects which can lead to university placements, as well as vocational subjects that prepare students for other study and career pathways. We also run three academies on site – the primary industries academy, the hospitality academy and the construction/whakairo academy. Finally, we have a self-driven Pathways option where students can pursue any specific interest they have, from anywhere on the New Zealand Qualifications Framework.
Elizabeth van den Berg, Careers Adviser, Otamatea High School
