Career planning, guidance and counseling are areas that
bother all of us at some or the other point in our life. As students we are in
much greater need for better planning and guidance as we are new to the field
and are continuously in pursuit of most opportune course for building our future
prospects.
Those having a job and not satisfied we are in search of
better opportunities.
As parents it is a different situation. Our children in high school are growing and soon will head for college. Concerned about our children’s future we are willing to sacrifice and give
them the best opportunity. The parents’ own past experiences are their mirror
to their success or failure. Overzealous parents are worried for the future of
their children and at times even depressed. It is not a big issue. Because the
parents’ parents too had their worries then!
So, at all times in the past, the present and the future similar
concerns echo in different times.
How to progress in getting the right education, right guidance
and the right counseling. There are some
golden points in this area to follow. Social interaction with peers as to what
are their plans and what they are pursuing. Secondly, speak to your teachers
and faculty and career guidance centres at the institution you are attending.
Sit on net and explore the net resources available.
Information is the most important asset. Note down your
interests and draw a list of prospective fields and your order of preferences.
Short list them over a period of time. Go by your interests as the most
important aspects if you have possessed with some special skills such as
artistic, technical or communication. Having any thing and every thing backed
by a professional qualification is the
best bet.
When it comes to career and the future of children it is a very
exciting area at every level. Some youth wants to place policies and programs for them. However
success depends upon seriousness and the programs put on ground.
Tabitha
Grier-Reed points an interesting point in career planning. She lays
emphasis in understanding the identity of the student and then personal
development as the starting point. What is important in current context is that
the planning should be for skill sets with multiple pathways. Because in the 21st
century industry and areas open up and close. So multiple skill sets are
important to be successful in career.
Career guidance at institutional level has a different problem.
Students come from different backgrounds, upper class, middle class and underprivileged
class. While the upper class are better placed in career planning, the middle
classes are also future oriented. The underprivileged are the most high risk
group needing guidance.
Tabitha Grier-Reed has worked for the US Federal TRIO
program, an outreach program designed to “identify and provide services for individuals
from disadvantaged backgrounds”. TRIO assists low-income individuals, first
generation college students and individuals with disabilities to progress
through the academics from high school to post-baccalaureate programs.
The most important way of career planning is the
collaborative effort of all the three stakeholders: The student, the parents
and the teachers to work
together.
