Career Uncertainty

Natal’ya Galliot, PhD Candidate in Education at Macquarie University, argues for early career conversations with students in order to reduce career uncertainty.

The education system should move towards ensuring that students are provided with career education sessions before they make their elective subject choices, enabling them to make informed decisions. At the moment, this rarely happens.

Indeed, according to the responses of careers advisors in schools, to a survey by the Career Industry Council of Australia, many school-based career practitioners are so time poor and have had their time allowance decreased, such that career advice at school level is falling short.

According to Galliot, Students who think critically about their career choices well before they leave school, are thought to benefit from improved further education and employment outcomes and make better choices than those who don’t.

With 20.1% of 15 to 19 year old Australians unemployed, it is essential that they are assisted in reducing career uncertainty, and this can be achieved most effectively by establishing a coaching or mentoring relationship with a professional career development practitioner who takes the young person through secondary school and beyond.

In this way students and job seekers engage in a range of learning activities including: exploration of skills, attributes and values; job market awareness; how to establish and maintain a network; resume writing skills that market their unique brand; exposure to business and industry via volunteering and work-experience; interview skills; body language/self-presentation; internet research skills, and more.

We need to teach secondary school age students and young adults to be resilient, self-directing, creative and brave career entrepreneurs, rather than living a life of career uncertainty.

For appointments, contact me by following the link below.

http://www.karenyourcareercoach.com/contact/